Like so many recent walks, yesterday’s started in the rain. Aki and I squished down a now-snow-free trail along the Mendenhall River. The river ran green in the gray light. Water collected in Aki’s gray curls. Thick river mist obscured views of the surrounding mountains. The weather seemed emblematic of the overcast year that would end at midnight. 

            The river mist was glowing by the time we reached the bend of the river which offers a view of the glacier on a clear day. Thunder Mountain started to shrug off the surrounding cloud cover. 

            Quietly, a rainbow formed. It was so faint that at first I blamed my wishful imagination. The Bible tells us that God formed a rainbow over Noah’s ark to seal his promise to never again flood out life on earth. The way the world’s peoples treated each other in 2019, I was looking for a sign that God wouldn’t renege on his promise.  

            As if to put me at ease, the rainbow solidified. One leg plunged into the river and the other touching the glacier. After we moved onto the glacial moraine, it was all blue skies and white peaks. Mts. McGinnis and Stroller White stood tall above the reforming river mist. 

            Things returned to normal after the clouds recaptured the sun. Before returning to the car, we stopped at a Moose Lake beach to watch the bright-white tip of Mt. McGinnis disappear into the gloam.

Happy New Year to the readers of “Walking with Aki.” May next year bring happiness.