Night Time View

My light bulb turns on, and I look at the world around me. As the sun is going down, and dusk is starting to emerge, the temperature is dropping. Little flurries of snow are beginning to blow through the air. People dressed in warm hats and heavy coats are starting to hurry by, trying to evade the cold and escape the incoming dark. It is winter, so there are fewer people out and about for me to observe. Because of this, I try to pay attention to everything that is happening.

Walking by, I hear one lady talking on the phone, telling the person on the other end of the line about her day. I can hear frustration and dissatisfaction in her tone. She sounds tired and can’t wait until she is home, out of the chilly air. She is walking swiftly and sounding a little out of breath. Briefly, the lady looks up at me as she passes through the center of my light. Does she appreciate me and the rest of my kind being here, trying to keep her safe as she walks?

A man going by in the opposite direction is walking his dog. The dog stops at the base of my pole, sniffing along the grass. It starts to get a little excited, taking in the smells of other animals who had previously stopped there. Pawing at the ground next to the sidewalk, it starts digging into one spot a little. The man gives the dog’s leash a slight tug, and the animal reluctantly stops its investigation of the area and begins to walk again. To make up some lost time, the man now moves a little faster than before to get to his destination and out of the frigid air.

At a nearby bus stop, I can see people waiting and watching for their bus. My glow is barely hitting them. One lady wraps her scarf tightly around her neck, trying to protect herself against the chilly drafts. Her breath visible in the evening lamplight. A teenage boy stands with his hands in his pockets, bobbing his head to the music he is listening to through headphones. He starts to shift his weight back and forth, from one leg to the other, using the small movements to stop his legs from getting too cold and stiff in the wintry air. One bus pulls up, and a lady who was sitting in the small shelter stands up and walks to the bus stop sign. She longingly looks into the bus and the warmth it possesses, but before she can enter and escape the cold air, she must step back to let several people disembark. Once they were all off the bus, the lady scurried onto the bus as quickly as she could.

Along the street, cars are flying by me in both directions. They are filled with people eager to get to the end of their journey and off the roads, which are now starting to get more treacherous. The sounds of their tires on the frozen street making a barely audible crunching sound. They are going by me so fast that my light barely touches them before they are out of my view.

Across the street, I see another of my kind, ever the stoic observer like myself. Its light is shining down on a couple holding hands. Their arms are swinging back and forth, expressing what appears to be the joy of being together. I can see larger snowflakes starting to form, floating down, visible in the light from the lamp post across the street. It lands on the heads and shoulders of the lady and man. The sidewalk now has a light dusting of snow, leaving a trail of footprints as the couple moves away from the light and my view.

Perched on top of the other lamp post is a crow. The bird looks down at the world below, tilting its head as it also watches the couple walk by. Another crow swoops down in front of it, causing it to open its wings and launch into the air. Both birds rise up, swirling into the air and landing in a nearby tree holding the rest of their murder. Some of the birds can be heard calling out to each other back and forth in a cacophony of sound. Many of them fly up from the branches and off into the darkness.

The sun has now fully disappeared, and the moon is now completely visible in the sky. It is very large and bright, bathing the world in its silver light. I can see clouds moving and sometimes covering the moon for a few minutes, then they move on, and it’s back once again illuminating the world. The temperature has dropped more now, and I can no longer see any people around. There are the sounds of coyotes in the distance, but I cannot see the animals that are calling out. The wings of an owl are seen in the light from another lamp down the street. It swoops down to grab a small critter behind that lamp post, and then the silent predator is gone.

Hours pass, and my fellow lamps and I are left to stand watch. Their silhouettes visible against the night sky. At this time, the presence of any living thing is rarely detected. Once in a while, a lone car drives by. There are so few now that after leaving tracks in the snow on the street, they quickly disappear again under the new falling snow. Here and there, somebody walks by, leaving a trail of footprints which are also soon covered and fade away.

In the distance, the sun is now starting to show its presence again. Though it is still dark, the chirping of birds is starting to rise in the surrounding trees. The first sign of a new day beginning. There is now the sound of shoes approaching as a jogger is visible coming down the sidewalk. The reflective tape on the arm of her jacket flashes in the lamp light as she passes me by. Her heavy breath comes out in white puffs in the air around her.

More and more cars are now driving down the road; People starting their morning routine as the sun gets brighter and the moon disappears. Daybreak has emerged, casting a gentle orange and red glow in the sky. My fellow sentinels and myself now go back to sleep until we are needed again tonight.