Oh how I miss the blue skies!
Drip! Drop! Drip! Drop! When will this constant drizzle stop?
Although Shanghai is not extremely cold in the winter, it is extremely wet and gray. In fact, I can’t remember the last time I saw a blue sky. The gray does not end with the sky either. The roads are gray, the sidewalks are gray, the concrete sky rises are, for the most part are (you guessed it!) gray! The never ending grayness can really get under your skin. However, I have found the perfect cure to overcome my ‘winter grays’.
I think of my favourite place in the entire World, my cottage. I am quite lucky to have traveled to many amazing places all over the World, but still my cottage is by far my absolute, without a doubt, favourite place to be.
When the winter grays are becoming too much to handle I see myself lying on the dock, in the warm sunshine, as the waves cause the dock to sway gently in the water. I hear the birds chirp and the splashes of the paddles from a canoe passing by. I feel the cool breeze and the touch of the rough sand between my toes. I smell the amazing scent of the freshest air mixed with the aroma of my Mom’s delicious feast grilling on the barbecue. I taste the fresh water filling my mouth and the grit of a little sand that always seems to find its way into my mouth while swimming underwater. I imagine this on those gray days and everything seems to be okay!
The main reason I go home each summer is to experience the magic of my cottage, so that the memory is not far from my reach throughout the winter months, that seem to go on forever.
Shaggers Picchu's Blog 
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Winter gray seems heavy and slug like but
your memories of the cottage seem to wash the
gray away like hair color:) Glad you are able
to visualize.
Shaggers…I know what you mean about this dreadful gray, wet nastiness that has permeated our lives during the past month(s)…it’s got to end soon or I’ll go crazy!
I really love the way you’ve crafted your slice today. Your lead drew me in and made me want to read more. I loved the repetition of the color gray…and yes, as someone who sees it everyday, your descriptions are quite accurate! My favorite part of your slice was the way you used each of the five senses to describe your experiences at the cottage. They made me feel as if I was there…and now I totally want to plan a trip to visit you and your serene cottage! When can I come? 😉
Nice slice today…see you in the morning lovely!
Living in the Pac NW – I experience those endless gray days as well. A “patch of blue” is something special to hang on to – whether its a memory, photo, or fleeting glimpse!