May Gray—Yay!

May gray is here, and I’m loving it! This morning I awoke to birdsong muted by a thick gray marine layer. Looking out the window from our bed, the sky was gray—not my favorite color, but a hint that there would be a magical misty show later in the day. I rolled over, cuddled with the pups, and dozed.

Not all foggy days are created equal. When the marine layer is high, a layer of somber gray can make you feel heavy and . . . not exactly depressed, but just stuck in neutral. This happens when it reappears day after day and the yellow light of the sun never breaks through. Even the plants react. Glossy green leaves acquire a coating of mildew, curl up, and fall to the ground. The dogs sleep more, and optimism leaves the room. 

Ground fog is different. It is ephemeral, covering the land in the dark hours and retreating by midday or early afternoon. This phenomenon engages your senses and sparks your imagination. You can smell the tang of sea and taste the salt air. Moisture settles on your skin with a gentle touch. And while this is happening, the cloudy air twists and turns, creating haunting beauty that conjures up doorways to faraway kingdoms, fantastic creatures, and unknown lands. 

As the fogs gives way to the warming sun, it wreaths the trees and mountains, rolls across the surface of the land, and fades away, blessing everything it touches with fine water droplets.

There are other reasons to love this natural gift. It lessens the danger of wildfires fires by keeping drying spring brush moist and, in some cases, alive. And your skin will glow with nature’s own moisturizer. Fog also helps keep the temperature down.

I don’t know about you, but I have a love/hate relationship with the air conditioner. I am definitely an open-window person. I want that fresh outside air to circulate through our home. When the temperature soars and the windows close, I am grateful for the AC, but I always feel like I’m breathing canned, dry, unnatural air. 

Today, I was not disappointed. A few minutes ago, the last vestiges of fog hugged the ground, and as a moderate sun rose high in the sky, cloudy air rolled across the pool, caught on the roses, and headed back to the sea. 

Today the high will be in the mid-70s. How perfect is that? Checking the weather AP, I see that the marine layer will be with us most of the week. I’m in weather heaven!

“Fog”
By Carl Sandburg

The fog comes 
on little cat feet.

It sits looking 
over harbor and city 
on silent haunches
And then moves on.