Gather ‘round and let me tell you a tale as old as time (may his clock keep on winding). You hear that? That is sound of the wind (may she keep on gusting) bringing in our story. Do you feel it, all around us? The shiver starting from the top of your head down to your neck is nothing to be afraid of. The truth (may she be honest) is among us tonight.

Now where do I begin? Ah yes, with the first song. You see, what you think you know is false and what you think is impossible is reality. The ocean (may he continue to flow) first met the coast (may she remain grounded) on a night just like this one. For a while they were blissfully in love. He would sing her to sleep every night with the lullaby of his waves. Now, the ocean is a tricky guy and likes to go away to visit other lands, but the coast was jealous of him and plotted to keep him with her always. So, the coast formed herself into a hook to try and catch hold of him. This is how the Cape was formed. She failed, of course, but the ocean did not take this mischief lightly. Every once in a while he sends his little cousins, the hurricanes, to temper her spirit. Still, since he really did love the coast, he makes sure that they are weak by the time they reach her. What the southern coasts did to receive his full wrath every year is a story for another time.

The second song is tale of the air (may she breathe easy) and the earth (may he stand firm). They were not lovers, but good friends. In fact, you’ll be happy to hear, they still are. But, like any friends, they get in little fights here and there. Being two incorporeal spirits means that fights can’t be resolved in what we humans might consider “normal” ways. So, they have devised a clever means of getting their frustrations out. During the summer, when emotions turn hot and bothered, the earth sends dust while the air sends wind to do battle. The angrier the earth and air are with each other, the more that their two lieutenants swirl together. Eventually the force of their anger fuses them into a darker being, the tornado (may he twist and turn). Then, when the earth and air let go of their anger the tornado loses his energy and the dust and wind separate once again and go on their way.

The third song is a bit of a sad story. The rain (may she cry) is oftentimes lonely, way up in the sky (may he be light) while she watches the air and earth have fun down below. In the summer, when the earth and air are fighting, she is content to come down and observe from time to time. They provide great amusement. But, when the air brings in the cold (may he freeze) and the earth settles down for the winter, the rain gets bored. In order to keep herself occupied, she painstakingly creates every single rain drop into a unique snowflake when she casts it down. She wishes to bedazzle the earth and the air, to get them to pay attention to her, but what she doesn’t realize is that they simply grow colder towards her with every flake. As she becomes more and more frustrated, she throws down snowflake upon snowflake creating her malevolent companion, the blizzard (may he snow). Eventually, the rain gets tired and gives up. She disperses the blizzard and, one day, the air calls in the warm (may she blaze).Sometimes the rain calls up the blizzard for one last huzzah, but, in the end, the warm becomes strong enough to turn the blizzard and her snowflakes away. So, the songs repeat themselves, year after year, resulting in the weather we experience each and every day.