The room is large with a cathedral ceiling and the recent winter storm has caused a power outage. The flickers from the burning candles light my path throughout the freezing house.

Mother Nature has isolated me from the outside world. It’s a blinding white-out. I keep the drapes closed so the brightness of the snow and ice doesn’t hurt my eyes. Sudden flashes of a grey mass appear down the hallway. Feeling quick burst of air I am succumbed with a heightened awareness of something I can only describe as sinister. The hair on the back of my neck and arms are raised to needle point.

Not knowing what to do, I grab the heaviest comforter I own, and seek refuge on the couch. With my eyes tightly closed, I pray the monster will disappear; and for a few hours, it did as I slept.

When I woke it was night and the wind was howling. I shuddered at the sound.

I walked into the bedroom, and the monster was waiting for me. The huge grey mass with amber eyes, but the glow was radiating heat, giving warmth through the night.

All things unknown and feared aren’t necessarily monsters. They could give comfort in one form or another.

7:07 PM

Vera Jackson © 2014