Page 82 - 1923 VES Meteor
P. 82
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dm;ky lads talked of the SHJn·eme plcasme of ..ridin' tho
,-alve" and ot the chunrc:~ of being blown to perdition. 3. T H E D£FFEHE.XC'E
I sat deep in m.'· ann chair staring into the fit·c. On a rug before the hearth a collie--my collie--lily sb·ctchcd out, still, silent, impassi"e; a giant at rest. At times his trusting eyes tumed from the fire and met the dreamy admiration of mine. On the edge of the hearth a great black cat pmTed with closed eyes. The dog moodily watcl1cd hot· ns she idly flicked an ear. At the intcrn1ls of I1er pmring tho clock on the mantle ticked its monotonous solil,)quy. I changed my position thinking myself about to doze off. The snow slid off the roof with a dull thud. Snow-coated windows reflected the li,ely glow of scarlet embers. Sometimes the wind blew fe,•crishly, whining in the chimney. I started, hut Nature's children, too well versed in Her ways, slumbered on.
Pictures formed in the flickering flames. I thought of my wife and children bnsking on a burning beach under the southern sun. How they were laughing and pla~·ing in the sa.nd! And tho great blue billows rising, rushing on, roaring and breaking in a swirl of green foam so different from the chopping, slashing, spuming, frigid breakers, an unwhole- some greyish green 011 the nearby scnsl10rc. How different was their safe, level bench reflecting the yellow s1m from the gruesome piles of shifting saud as ghostly as giant gra\'es of ships. Could the tender, warm breeze gently coaxing the color into delicate cheeks be compared to the biting blasts which plastered snow on faces from which all warmth had long since ' vanished1 A gaudy hydroplane.carrying a pretty adventur- ess :flitted safely over the thundoriug waves no faster than the sea-mew who screamed her challenge to the moaning waYes as she skimmed their foam-flecked crests. N'o colored bathing suits were seen on that treacheous margin of coarse sand
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