Nightfall

At this time of year, when an overcast afternoon can make the 5:00 sunset seem to happen at 4:00, I’ll take whatever sun I can get. But I also appreciate how the overcast often dramatically breaks just at the end of the day, as if to give us a gift of rambling sunlight, swirling clouds and changing colors we might not otherwise appreciate on a bright sunny day. The lacy bare trees of early winter etch a chiaroscuro on the light show.