Ring around the moon...

The moon was rising as I walked back from the mailbox, and it was breathtaking. Bright and clear in the midnight blue twilight, with a clear ring circling it. The clouds are coming in fast on an east wind... there will be rain tomorrow. 

It's always best in fall or winter, this ring around the moon. Or maybe I take more notice of it, because it rises so early. Or because it always makes me think of the Dan Fogelberg song, In the Passage:

There's a ring around the moon tonight,
and a chill in the air.
And a fire in the stars that hang
So near, so near.

There's a sound in the wind that blows
Through the wild mountain holds
Like the sighs of a thousand crying
Souls, crying souls.

To me, it's the moon of the high country, the mountains, the wind blowing fast and sure over a desert landscape. It brings out a longing in me for those quiet places, the wild places. Somewhere away from the traffic, and the noise that drowns out the sounds of nature.

That's where I want to be.