Waiting for Solstice

 

From May 19 to June 20

In Reykjavik, Iceland

I took a photo every midnight

On the balcony of this house

For documentation of time?

Maybe

But as time went on

I gradually lost the sense of why I’m doing this

It had become something that has to be done

Everyday

At 12

So when my friends travelled here

I couldn’t stay late with them

Had to be back before midnight

“Midnight,” I laughed when thinking about it 

“It’s like Cinderella.”

Which my mum used to call me

From the English name they gave me: Cindy

Which I never liked

Because there was always more than one Cindy in English class

And the teacher would just call us by Cindy 1, Cindy 2, Cindy 3…

Feel like clones

Back to midnight

In the end

It’s more like muscle memory

Wait for 12 o’clock to come

Put on my jacket

Grab my camera

Go into the windy balcony

And get this done

So that I can go to bed

I even set an alarm

Like Pavlov's dog (In this case, I am both Pavlov and the dog)

 

But tonight

It’s neither cold nor windy

The pink-orange light is spread on the sky

With the peaceful blue of sea

Makes me think

What if this is what I’m actually waiting for?

A tranquil surprise of warm Icelandic night (I mean, not that warm, but warm enough)

Where I found extraordinary in ordinary

It’s just another midnight

It’s just another sunset

It’s just a perfect Icelandic day

 

June 9, 2024

Hsin Shyu