Mercury

Well hello, September! The month makes me think of back to school, which reminds me of when I was in school and teachers used to pass around a liquid ball of mercury which we would hold in our sweaty little palms, roll around a bit, marvel over, and then pass on to the kid next to us until it made the rounds of the room.

Mercury. Dangerous stuff. In the palms of our hands, no less. A little liquid ball of silver. Like magic!

So there's a time in the afternoon when the sun inches toward the lake to make its retreat for the day, but before the sun gets too low and the sky starts turning color. This is when the lake gets all sparkly and magical and, to me, mercurial. That silvery liquid that was so mystifying.

I can't hold mercury anymore, but I'm still fascinated by it and delighted that I get to see it, walk into it even, most days that I'm here.