You should have seen the one that got away! It was this big! No, even bigger than I can stretch out my arms! Seriously! It stretched across the entire sky!

It was 7 am and I was photographing a communications van by the Grand Basin (it had a satellite mast that stuck up about 500 feet - well, ok, maybe it wasn’t quite that tall, but whatever, I’m pretty sure it was my CIA handlers keeping an eye on me) when my wife called (another handler keeping an eye on me).

“The children want to know if you’re bringing breakfast”.

Breakfast. Oh, yeah!

“Yes, I have some bread and bagels for each of you.” I responded, “and I’m on my way home right now, just as soon as I hop back in the car and leave the most incredibly beautiful sunrise in the greatest urban park in the entire universe, well, USA at least.”

“Good.” said my wife. I basked in the spousal approval just bestowed upon me for a few seconds before I stashed my gear and headed home.

It happened as I was turning from Lagoon Drive onto Skinker Avenue; I caught sight of the emerging orb of illumination. Wait, scratch that, too obtuse. I saw what Homer called “rosy fingered dawn” lighting a bar of clouds on the eastern horizon just behind the taller buildings of St. Louis’ Central West End.

“Wow!” I exclaimed, veering slightly as I gazed in wonder to my left instead of in front. I was just about to stop in the middle of 5 lanes of traffic (it wasn’t heavy, though) and snap some photos when it occurred to me that I had to answer to a higher authority and get those bagels home to my hungry family. I can only say, that you should have been there. This was the one that got away. Here are the ones that didn’t.