Magic Along the Roadside

Something I saw while driving home from yesterday afternoon's walk in Mason has made me think I ought to start a blog on driving, as a companion to this one on the magic of walking. Heading west on Columbia, I glimpsed a golden ball by the side of the road, and wondered why someone left a Christmas ornament lying there. Not too much farther down, I saw another one. Continuing along, I saw more of them, and realized that some onions had fallen off of a farm truck, (a not uncommon occurrence out here in farm country). The sun was at just such an angle, shining on the onions in just such a way, that they truly glittered like golden orbs. Of course, my driving speed aided the illusion, as a walker would not have been fooled. I then stopped and dashed into Darrell's Market to buy a couple of things; when I came out and continued my drive, I saw more onions, but the sun was no longer at just the right angle to work its magic.

The illusion of onions as golden balls amuses me, because the golden orb is a traditional sun symbol, and in Jungian psychology, it is also an archetypal emblem of the Self. Golden balls (in sets of three) used to be hung at the top of English Maypoles, and they are a common design element in old German signage and other wrought iron decorations. Also, people have seen mysterious golden orbs hovering over crop circles and other mystical sites in Britain. So, if I want to color the onions by the side of the road with meaning, I could read them as a message of how we can find a shining quality of happiness and wholeness in the humble things of the earth.