What happened after 5:28 was interesting too, but I'll save that for later. Oh, the suspense! You can imagine, given the structure of the clouds at the point where the sun will emerged.
I wanted to put the first 2 photos up early because I'm going through my email, and I see this question from Portly Pirate: "Have you ever mentioned which season is your favorite for sunrises? Do you even have a favorite?"
If I clicked my "sunrise" tag and scrolled and scrolled, I might be able to form an opinion about which season has the best chance of a better than average sunrise balanced against the likelihood of a very plain sunrise, factoring in my preference for the completely cloudy form of plainness over the completely clear form of plainness, especially when there's at least some structure to the clouds.
But here's the thing about seasons. We live in the day. Let each day reveal itself. Show up and pay attention. Don't worry about the days in the recent past or near future. There's nothing I can do about the sunrise other than to witness and respect whatever sunrise presents itself in the day I'm in. The sunrises don't group together and influence each other, and there's no benefit to thinking about the likelihood of better sunrises in particular seasons.
We were walking in the woods yesterday and talking about the way the leaves looked at this point in the summer. We were all enclosed in an area that in winter will open up. And it will be pretty in a different way in the fall and the spring. What good is there in picking favorites? All the seasons are beautiful, and if you believe that, the seasonal change increases the beauty.
It's like growing old. You can say, It was better to be young!, but it's better to believe that it was not better.
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3 comments:
Temujin writes:
"Great post. Every day is unique. Down here, along the Gulf Coast, we like to catch sunsets along shore. I don't do nearly as many as I should (we'll do more when my wife retires), but we note that each sunset is completely unique- wonderful and different from any other that has ever been. What we miss down here are the seasons. Our seasons are denoted by a change in overall daily temperature and the cessation of rain (in the winter) vs the daily 30 minute afternoon thunderstorms (in the summer). But we miss the trees up north, the color changes, and the landscape changes as the leaves drop away, then come back in the striking baby-green of spring.
"Sunsets do change from season to season however. And if you go to enough of them, you can pick out the season. Winter sunsets are different from summer sunsets. As for growing old...I realized this morning that my dad, who died young, would have been 101 today. I'm alive saying my dad would have been 101. Somehow I'm not 23 any longer, though in my mind I'm still trying to figure out this life thing- as I did when I was a kid. The difference with age for me is that I love my today. When I was younger I used to live with my head in the future, always looking forward. Nowadays I look at the day- today. Nothing else matters to me anymore. I love that."
K writes:
"Just got back from traveling. I have to admit that I've come to love Wisconsin. But why? when you think of what the state has so suddenly become? Sadly, we just aren't good enough for our rulers and it frosts them off, on the coasts and here. Frosted-coastie government. So what's to like in Wisconsin? Perhaps you can only line up a series of sunrise pictures, if you luckily have them, and point to them, and say "You see?" Of course, I also loved traveling. There, you point to a series of ordeals to be mastered as if in a boot camp for Society-as-it now-is. Plus travel means seeing family, which I refuse to say fits under "series of ordeals." Say rather, ventures into the known and loved unknown."
Chris writes:
"“We live in the day. Let each day reveal itself. Show up and pay attention.”
"This reminded me of a classic Native American prayer. It is about sunsets, not sunrises, but the theme of paying attention is there.
"“O Great Spirit, whose breath gives life to the world, and whose voice is heard in the soft breeze; we need your strength and wisdom. Cause us to walk in beauty. Give us the eyes ever to behold the red and purple sunset. Make us wise so that we may understand what you have taught us. Help us learn the lessons you have hidden in every leaf and rock. Make us always ready to come to you with clean hands and steady eyes, so when life fades, like the fading sunset, our hearts may come to you without shame.”"
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