Sunrise Before Dawn

The drone of the aircraft's engine was like a lullaby. And predictably, almost all the passengers were asleep on the overnight flight. The flight was eastward bound, so that it would be flying into the sunrise...

The view from the window was surprising. It was not yet three in the night (or in the morning), and the sky was turning light. There were no clouds, and it was mesmerising to see a blue curtain getting bluer by the minute outside. But of the sea beneath, there was only darkness. It was like someone shining a torch over a wall. Above the wall's shadow, everything was bright, but what lay below remained dark. In the thrill of this spectre, little did the curious young child realise that his bright new watch displayed the time of a timezone left far behind. He wouldn't have cared had he known. It was magic. And magic is not to be understood...

So it was, that on this summer night, the sun came early. It came before dawn. AbNQ