The Calm After the Storm

The humidity was so thick it almost stole your breath. The dense summer heat building throughout the day until it cannot contain itself any longer. In a brilliant show, it breaks.

Streaks cut the sky. In the distance, rumbles echo. The gathered clouds release the collective breath they had been holding. The scent of damp earth permeates our apartment. The scent of fresh clean air is everywhere.

Pounding thunder over the building takes me back to my childhood. The fascination of the lightning, the fear of the loud sounds that followed.

As the evening draws closer the sky begins to change.

The hot day displayed in the hazy fiery reds and oranges.

Violet bleeds into indigo.

Indigo to black.

The convergence of hot and cold air lights up the night sky in streaks and sheets, like the flash of my camera. When it's over, the cool damp will remain until the new day's sun dries it. But the scent clings in my memory.