When I am in our sun room with its circle of glass to the outside world, I feel embraced by all my loves. I can swim in the solitude, delight in nature’s many changes, and share all moods with my friends and animals.
In summer the open windows allow the screens to filter in warm breezes and sunlight. They also let in the angry chattering of feisty squirrels and the high-pitched chirping of the birds as they congregate at the feeder or perch on nearby tree branches. Freshly cut grass with its sweet, new scent floats in and wafts by my nose along with the light, perfumery scent of roses or the dewy smells of an early morning shower.
At other times, when the windows are shut, I close my eyes and listen to the driving fall rain knocking and rattling on the window panes and fist-heavy pounding on the two ceiling skylights. But, it is quiet inside while the wind, rain, and dark skies twist, swirl, roar, and flash with sword-like cuts in the distance. Our room brightens with flash-bulb sharpness and then once more darkens. Excitement permeates our haven while the storm rages on in the darkened outside world.
Still at other times, when the windows are locked and closed against the claws of winter, the furnace heat is on and we sit snuggled in our chairs, each with a dog or cat on our laps. A white, fluffy wool blanket separates our indoor warmth from the frigid winter.
In the distance, the black, lacy trees with skeletal fingers reaching toward the sky stand like sentries in the snow. Inside we are quietly enjoying each other, listening to the new falling snow finger-tip tinkling on the skylights and feather-brushing against the windows. A whitish, gray softness fills the outside air. The birdfeeders are empty and the squirrels and other wild life are hiding in the evergreens until the moon rises once more and the stars flicker in the muddy-darkened sky. And inside and outside our sun room, the stillness holds togetherness for both human and animal families.
