Just working on my computer, a normal Monday afternoon. Editing pictures from my latest photography project. Listening to my favorite iTunes playlist. When all of a sudden, with no warning, the screen goes black. The sounds of my cheery Disney Classics that can fix any mood turn to the irritating beeping of the backup power supply getting ready to kick in if it's needed. We knew a power outage was extremely likely, but for some reason, I wasn't expecting it at all. For the past several years, I could count the number of outages we've had in my house on one hand's fingers. And each time our electricity was suddenly cut off, usually due to extreme weather, it always came back within an hour or two at most.
This morning in the midst of a physics quiz, when the lights flicker, a peer yells "look out the window!", and I've got to say, I did not expect to see what I did. Out our one small classroom window, which just less than an hour ago was giving off bright light of the morning sun, was black. Just black, nothing could be seen but an empty void of darkness. My hand flies to my mouth, to cover a gasp, scream, I'm not sure myself. Extreme weather has always terrified me if I'm not with my family. I could barely finish my quiz, my hands were shaking so badly, wondering why we weren't getting in to tornado-warning formation.
Needless to say, that storm (that my Dad has been calling a "micro burst") which lasted no more than ten to fifteen minutes, caused the power outage that we have been experiencing as of around 3:30 this afternoon. Of course, there are obvious drawbacks to having the lights go out. All of the things that I could be getting done in my afternoon, now impossible to even start working on. During one of the hottest days of the summer, the leftover air conditioning that has been keeping my house cool won't last much longer. Milk is spoiling in the fridge and ice cream melting in the freezer. However, then the night comes. Possibly the scariest part of a power outage, but somehow, the part I like the most.
Before areas around my house got rewired a few years ago, our power went out every few days, it just became commonplace. I don't resent those hot summer nights when the lights went out, believe it or not, I treasured them. For some reason, being without electricity was always had a way of bringing us all together. No television humming in the background for us to stare aimlessly at. Computers are useless, so no one can make the excuse that they have work to do. There's something about power outages that's always been a little magical to me. Not during the day, but at night. With the soft glow of candlelight and flashlights, everyone seems compelled to whisper, as if with the lights, their voices have been turned down as well. If I'm at a friend's house, we'll have the urge to tell scary stories.
I've mentioned several times how I always believe the darkness to be exhilarating. I'm always more inspired at night, in darkness. Not as a classic "emo" statement, it's just always been a fact for me. I'm a night owl. I know that night is night, regardless of if the lights are on or not. But with a power outage, we're forced to turn out the lights. Forced to play that board game your family has been meaning to try ever since it was unwrapped three Christmases ago. To huddle everyone around one laptop to watch a family movie together. Maybe to even just sit and talk as a family. These are my memories of power outages of the past. When the light is forced out of our household, a new light of exhilaration is lit. The excitement of the darkness. No pressure of deadlines or projects. The feeling like you can just do nothing at all. This is a foreign feeling to me.
Power outages of my past will always be looked upon fondly by me. Inconvenient? Of course. But as much as I may moan, groan, and complain about this prolonged power outage, I'll always think upon them with a glint in my eye. Memories of togetherness, rare silence, and candlelight.
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