“Snow: Part 2”

“As he stood meditating the scene—the filigreed branches, lampposts fitted with furry, round hats, roof rakes striped with a draftsman’s perfection, and bushes topped by ice floes—occasionally called back to practicality by the need to wipe the glass with the sleeve of his shirt, Skylar wondered why nature had always been able to exercise such a potent influence on his consciousness. Throughout his life, he remembered, he had been brought to a standstill by the sight of the sun making mystic heavens of the cloud-world, of the sky seared by ramose lightning tridents, and of the crescent moon smiling sidelong at the star dots that begged to be connected. It was as though these images had been shown him to jog his memory of something huge and important of which he remained oblivious while walking in a straight line, his head inclined to the ground. Oceans and stars, sunsets and snowfalls, magnolia blooms and lightning storms brought him messages; they talked of forever and infinity, of soul-thrilling beauty and the peace of perfect silence, of the magnificence of life itself and the dazzling power that lay behind it all.”