Miasmatic Review

My private orchestra.

Last Saturday Tammi of Tammi’s world asked the question. “What’s your favorite thing about rain?” In the comments I made the statement of how relaxing a good cool fall rain is. There was nothing more relaxing than that. Then Saturday night after midnight I was out on the front porch smoking a cigarette. Ktreva had gone to bed already, and the boys were sleeping. There I stood, leaning against the railing enjoying the quiet evening air. And it was quiet. Quiet for living in the middle of a city of 150,000 people. No sirens, no planes, no yelling and even the motor vehicle traffic was almost non-existent.

The only sounds were the wind blowing through the leaves on the trees and crickets. The gentle breeze would pull the smoke off the end of the cigarette and make it dance. The thin wisps of smoke licking up into the air, twisting and twirling, dissipating until the human eye could no longer see it. The crickets played a gentle symphony to which the smoke danced. They drew their legs across each other like bows across a violin. The percussion of the leaves in the breeze complimented the crickets. Like natures orchestra, they played a haunting song. A song that cut to the heart of one’s soul and touches a person in ways they don’t expect.

Their tune brought back memories. Of good times long gone and friends lost. My mind filled with images that had been forgotten. Faces and places that I hadn’t thought of in at least 10 years. Times that when I reminisce with my friends, we have forgotten. All good memories that made me smile.

…And I was relaxed. Calmness spread over me that many people spend years and thousands of dollars trying to achieve. All my concerns and worries had vanished from me. The muscles in my neck and back had loosened from the tension that was in them earlier in the day. Clarity came to me and everything fell into place. I was relaxed more then any other time in my life.

All due to crickets.