Big Sky Country

“Go outside,” she said. “You’re going to miss it!”

What didn’t I miss?
A golden sunset.
Black Hills gold– mellow and warm.
Clouds– gold. Winter grass– gold.
McCullough Peaks– gold.
A golden horizon
Interrupted only by the distinctive silhouette of Heart Mountain.
Heart Mountain, sacred to the Crow people
Sacred to me
Landmark to my homecoming.

One golden cloud catches my eye
It’s a horse
And I’m a child
Transported in time, when clouds were more than water vapor.
Its golden mane and tail streaming, so lifelike I want her to see it too.
Before I can open the door to call her, it morphs.

As I watch, enchanted, it becomes
A turtle
The Starship Enterprise
A pterodactyl, perched– its wings tucked, its claws clutching a golden cliff.

A Chinese dragon– a gold one, with a beard
Foreshortened
Its long neck stretching towards me
An eel
A trout
A small school of fry
Scattering as she taps on the glass.

“Suppertime!” she says.

Heart Mountain Slide Show

UPDATE 3/6/2015: Thank you to everyone for your generous comments! I’m pleased that I might have been able to convey some sense of the beauty and wonder I’m fortunate to experience every day, living where I do.