AURORA OR NOT?

"In my dream there wasn't this much traffic, And we didn't take a wrong turn." These words were spoken matter-of-factly by Grant, my 5-year old grandson on our way to Disneyland on Tuesday.

Recalling a dream or actuality from my own childhood, I thought about the aurora borealis. Mt. Vernon, Illinois, may have been in the North in Civil War times, but for the most part, it's much more of a southern tradition with front porch swings and know-your-neighbor ambiance. But I have this recollection of seeing the aurora borealis when I was about 9 years old.

In fact, I can still picture it red and bright on my next door neighbor's house. I can't figure out why that image sticks with me but it does. I mean, why wouldn't we have gone outside to witness one of the great phenomenons in nature?

Did the lights come all the way south to southern Illinois, or did my active Grant-like mind conjure them up? I really don't know, but I hope I saw them.