Light

Lately, I've been observing light a lot more. The way light shines off of walls at different times of the day. The way it changes the feel of a room depending on the angles of the blinds or weather outside. The effects of light on the sky - how blue appears so differently depending of which direction you are looking. The way light is depicted in paintings. When I'm onstage with our choir, the light through the stained-glass windows colors the congregation in various shades of purple, blue and golden orange. It's a beautiful sight.

I think it all started a few weeks ago. It was a typical weekday morning, we were rushing around intent on making sure we remembered to do and grab everything we needed for the day. It was cold, so I went out to start the car. And there in the sky, majestic and silent, was the most stunning sunrise. The clouds made the most fascinating patterns and were shining in pinks and golds. I was caught completely off-guard. So I stopped, for a moment, in total appreciation. No distraction, no sound, complete silence. But the sky spoke volumes.

Since then, whenever I go out to start the car, I stop to appreciate the morning sky for a brief moment. How different it is each day... On clear mornings, the deepest blues with golden reds peeking just above the skyline. On a foggy morning, with the mist settled on the trees in the distance and everything soft and peaceful. And most days, the way the clouds slowly drift across the sky - sometimes a golden shimmer, sometimes brilliant pink, sometimes various shades of purple and gray in different patterns and shapes - fabulous!

I picked up the most inspiring little book recently called "Small Graces - The Quiet Gifts of Everyday Life" by Kent Nerburn. His writings are so contemplative, so beautiful, I almost cried after reading the introduction!

Anyway, there is one chapter called "The Gift of Clouds" where he tells of a time he was a cab driver. Everyday he would pickup a blind elderly woman and they would chat. One day he asked her if she could choose one thing to see, what would it be. She said "Clouds." He was surprised by that and asked her to explain. She said that it's because no one can explain them to her. They say they are like cotton or fog. The spray whipped cream in her hands and have her feel the shape of them on paintings. But still, she cannot picture them. She asks him how he would explain them. He looks into the sky and says "They're like God's dreams."

And so I have a new appreciation for the sky, for the clouds and for the way the light changes them every moment of every day. And I am grateful to be blessed with the eyes to see them.