Marble in the sky

As a young professional just starting out, I used to look up to many seniors with years of experience and maturity. One, a Bengali colleague in a sister publication, was the philosophical kind. He would sometimes walk me to the bus stop in the evening. On one such occasion I remarked to him how the star-spangled sky always sent a chill down my spine at its vastness and my smallness in contrast. He nodded, and added smilingly that this contrast applied to all mankind; it was just that not everyone acknowledged it.
Inky at night or bright and sparkling when the sun is out, the changing colours and moods of the sky are as unpredictable and awesome as they are beautiful.

Fist of fury

It's so true man can only imitate nature, never replicate it, as a walk across a marble floor or a visit to any shop selling marble and tiles will show. Always, unfailingly, each sheet or slab of the stone will have a unique pattern. Even when the sheets have been cut out of the same piece of rock, no two sheets will be absolutely the same.
And it's the same for the sky when it's at its most furious. As clouds scurry across the horizon or loom over your head threateningly, they form patterns we can never hope to copy.

Gnarled ferocity

Furrowed brow

Our family home in Punjab being located in an uncongested area, a recent visit gave me an uncomfortably close lens' view of the wrathful side of nature. It was as if huge slabs of marble had suddenly formed a dense magic carpet that had taken flight. The overcast skies stretched grey for as far as the eye could see. With my phone camera I began clicking the furrowed brow of nature, of course hurrying inside as the big raindrops came clattering down on us.
As the rain moved away, I heard my husband calling out urgently. I shuffled out, only to run back into the house on the double to grab my phone—for he was pointing to a rainbow.

Heavenly hues

Nature's palette

As he rushed upstairs to open the windows so I could have a better view, from the porch I quickly snapped the new colours of a sky that was so thundery and menacing just minutes back. By the time I gained the terrace, the rainbow was fading, but the clouds on the opposite side were now giving a serrated smile. The black and white marble in the sky had given way to a vivid palette. Almost scared by the angry clouds less than an hour back, here I was, clicking a more colourful and friendly horizon. Nature!
Part VIII of the series.