My favorite time of day falls at its beginning and its ending… these times measure the day and night. They are the ritual of nature and of mankind…. the sounds of them are music to my heart and soul.

The dawn comes in quietly at first, and there is a hush in the air as the night creatures, knowing their time is over fall silent. The quiet is loud, as if life is holding its breath in anticipation of what is coming… as the sky lightens, the scattered noise of the day creeps in slowly, in hushed tones as the day creatures begin to stir.  As the light gains momentum, the sky fills with muted colors, and the sound of birds is usually what I hear first, as if they wake to sing the day into being… slowly, the sounds of life begin to fall on my ears. And then the sounds of men too begin to be heard in the distance as people begin their day.

After spending the day with the hustle and bustle of life, dusk comes softly into being… the edge of night, darkness slowly descending, the noise of the day reaches its climax, as the day creatures rush about to do last minute gathering, visiting, and scurry to their hideaway for the night… there comes once again a quiet that after the days’ noise feels deafening at times. The world slows, and darkness fades in as the sky once again is painted in colors beyond measure… its as if the creatures of the day in reverence for their Maker, bow their heads to give thanks for another day. Then as the darkness deepens and daylight is extinguished the low and constant noise of the night things begins their symphony… the call of the night birds, the buzz and hum of creatures unseen but heard, frogs croaking from the darkness… the noise a symphony to my ears, my heart, my soul… the sounds of man drift away as people settle in to rest and then to sleep as well.

The life of an ole’woman, at the end of a dead-end dirt road in the swamp…