NIGHT DESCENDS

Lately I've paid more than usual attention to what happens in the sky. I guess the Fall provokes those kind of thoughts. In Summer the night and day are separated by beautiful sunsets and slowly unfolding twilights, but by Halloween the transition can be abrupt and violent. 

By the end of the day an otherwise sunny sky is cupped in the hands of dark clouds (above) and snuffed out. At this time of year the day no longer reliably evolves into into night; it's as often as not suffocated under a blanket.

As soon as darkness takes over the scenic beaches become traps for ships.

Suicides seek out high places.

People out for revenge seek their targets. 

Fanatics plot with their followers.

Fires are tended in military camps, prayer vigils are held in temples, the shadowy underworld is patrolled by the police. 

Eventually the night stretches out to the point where day becomes inevitable. High winds rip apart the clouds. The first delicate glow of morning appears. Here's how Emily Dickinson describes it: