Clouds and silver linings

Cloud watching is a fascinating pastime especially at present when I'm laid up , yet again, with the return of a persistent cold. Due to painful eyes I find I'm not able to read, do any crafts or even watch TV. So it was that, yesterday, I sat in the warm, sunny conservatory, sunglasses on, and just looked out at the sky. Actually it was a fairly cloudless day, but a myriad of vapour trails zig zagged across the blue. Later, those clouds that resemble feathers lazily appeared in the sky. Now that's where it gets confusing because although I watch the sky , especially keeping a " weather eye open" , when hillwalking , I don't know the technical terms for various cloud formations, which is a shame.  I've learned over the years to predict cloud formations and on my videos that I always take it seems I'm always saying " It looks as if the weather is about to change " and nine times out of ten I'm accurate. It's become second nature to predict the weather.

   Now Don will gaze out of his window at his home in Kendal and see all sorts of shapes in the clouds. He envisages animals, birds and faces and spends many an hour watching them drift across his window. Noting their movement from side to side thus knowing the wind direction . From his top window and by pressing one's face to the glass the Lake District mountains come into view and one can see by the cloud formation what the weather is doing in the Lakes.

  There is something sublime about lying flat on the ground and just looking up...nothing else..just gazing up. I try and look up whilst walking as we tend to forget to turn our heads that way and often keep our gaze down or admire the surrounding views. That way I've captured some amazing cloud formations.


  I adore flying and always take a window seat. It's wonderful to break through the clouds and look down on cottonwool clouds and imagine that you could drop down on them ( not through them !) and lie comfortably in their soft embrace. Catching glimpses of the earth below in breaks in the clouds, I wonder where I am, who lives below, what river I'm crossing, who tends the fields, what towns lie beneath the aircraft ?

  Forgive my ramblings today, as my head feels somewhat fuzzy ...like a soft white cloud...and I'm sitting in semi darkness in order to type.
  I'll take a break now and go look and see if I have any poems that mention clouds. So hold tight and I'll be back.

A Winter Cold

My head feels like a cumulus cloud-

Don't shine a light, nor talk too loud.

Filled with downy cottonwool you see.

When will I feel better and more like me ?

I want to feel like a cirrus cloud,

Soft and downy with fronds abound.

Instead this cumulonimbus one stays

Heavy in my head for many days.

Let me float like cirrocumulus, dappled and light, 

For I see nimbostratus on the horizon and I feel fright !

It looks so gloomy, the way ahead-

Think I'll just go back to bed .....

I didn't have any cloud poems in my collection so I quickly made this one up , also I looked at different types of cloud formations so I learned something new today.

Thanks for reading , Kath