Greetings friends. My how time flies. The last time I posted to this blog the days were still getting longer. Now, three weeks short of Christmas the days are almost as short as they will be. This time of year is known as Dark Season in Maine and for good reason.
Today is an important day in Dark Season. Today the sun set at 4:04pm. Even though solstice is still weeks away, this is the earliest sunset we will have. Our days will continue to get longer through the middle of next week due to the later sunrises, but even then, the sunrises will start to retrograde and we will be beginning our journey to longer days. Even for the few hours a day the sun makes an appearance in Dark Season, it doesn't ever get terribly high in the sky. When it's not obscured by the dark, stormy winter clouds, it shines directly into your eyes at obscenely blinding angles (remember to bring your sunglasses when you visit us in winter). This low sun-angle is what the local weatherman calls "bright, but ineffective sun", referring of course to its relative inability to affect a rise in temperature. I actually don't mind this time of year. After a wonderful summer and gorgeous fall, it is natural to want to come back inside and make things simple again. This usually leads to more eating, more sleeping, and less activity, so I have to be mindful of this and try to get exercise in when I can. But other than THAT little detail, the shorter days bring with them the holidays, football bowl games, basketball and hockey seasons, and yes snow! In a part of the country where the spring is late yet vibrant, the summer is all too short yet glorious, and the fall is like a second spring where every leaf is a flower, the winter months can easily become monochrome and underwhelming for the continual bombardment of white and silver palattes. If it wasn’t for the -20 degree wind chill greeting you at the door each morning, you could almost sleepwalk through the entire season…
...Enter the addition of wonderful holiday lights local artist, Pandora LaCasse, places all around town during the coldest months of the year. Arriving just short of Thanksgiving in mid-November, they often serve as a startling reminder that December is right around the corner. More than just Christmas lights, they are truly works of art and turn Portland (as well as nearby Freeport) into a magical, colorful wonderland for kids of all ages. Adorning street lamp posts, trees, the sides of buildings, anything they can cling to really...they bring a whimsical atmosphere to an already vibrant northern city. This parade of colors compliments my traditional yet modern city by bringing a contemporary flare that says "look at me!". Usually on display for the coldest, darkest months, they are almost pretty enough to make you want winter to last year round, their familiar and comforting glow casting a warm light across icy walkways and fields. Then, sometime in late winter/early spring, you wake up one day and they are gone. My first response is almost always instant sadness. But days later it seems (I'm sure it is more likely weeks), a few little buds of color start to appear through the late season snow...the purple crocus are back! Following them in short order are the yellow daffodils and then the multi-color tulips (I remember this because the OCD in me is delighted that they appear alphabetically!).
Ah yes...the parade of spring colors will eventually arrive and with it the hope of a new warm season with long, sunny days and lobster on the dock. But, until then, I have "Pandora's Lights" to remind me winter isn't so bad after all and, for now, spring can wait.
For full color pictures of Pandora's Lights, please CHECK OUT THESE AMAZING LINKS!!!!!
