Last night, we witnessed what we are losing. This morning, we witnessed what's coming. We are, as always, staring into the void of an unknown future, so perhaps it is time to meditate for a moment on the beauty and impermanence of nature.

An ice circle formed in the Snoqualmie River near North Bend on Saturday, an island that turned slowly for a while, broke up and was swept away by the current, leaving us only with its mystery. How did it get there? Why is it so round? What became of that branch? Why do I suddenly want pizza? Even the Wall Street Journal doesn't know for sure, though they posit a few theories in the video above.

Kaylyn Messer took some time to engage with the frozen disc's mesmerizing powers and capture them on video. Messer told the Seattle Times: “It was a very meditative thing to watch. It was just kind of like a record spinning on a player after a song was done.”

Here are Messer's original video clips, which you can watch if you'd rather meditate on them, unburdened by music or facts.


Ice Circle spinning on Middle Fork Snoqualmie River from Kaylyn Messer on Vimeo.



Ice Circle spinning on Middle Fork Snoqualmie River from Kaylyn Messer on Vimeo.