“There’s a sunrise and a sunset every single day, and they’re absolutely free. Don’t miss so many of them.” –Jo Walton
I have had the privilege of visiting the same piece of Earth for nearly four decades. It is a little island that sits on the southwest Florida coast in the Gulf of Mexico. It has provided our immediate family and my husband’s extended family years of beauty, delight and a peacefulness that is a rare jewel in these fast paced, often chaotic days in which we live. Needless to say, we are captivated by Captiva.
Every evening the sun sets across the water and says its good-night as it dips into the sea. And every night it paints a different canvas on the horizon and surrounding sky. Words from beautiful to spectacular are faint whispers of ways to describe the masterpieces on display.
We are on that island right now and because there haven’t been any evening storms we have been blessed with being able to view the sun going down over the water at the end of each day. I must have taken a thousand pictures from the same beach perspective, yet as day falls away I am compelled to hustle down there to snap a few more.
Why do I do that?
It would be so easy to become unimpressed and indifferent toward the setting sun and stay inside, not even opening the blinds on the glass doors. I mean, we’ve seen them countless times before, right?
The cottage here is only 50 yards from the beach and you CAN actually see the sunset through the screened porch if you want to, but it’s not quite the same.
In fact, just a few days ago as I headed for the beach, my husband decided he wasn’t going down this time. When I came back inside I found him profoundly disappointed. He had missed a brilliant sunset from the perspective of the beach.
There is an added beauty when you watch while the waves lap against your feet and the breeze blows through your hair.
There is something that settles inside you as the sun dips and then sinks into the water.
And then there is an awakening in your soul as the heavens become ablaze in glorious color if you wait just 10 minutes more. What an incredible gift!
What are the sunsets in your life that you are missing?
What is the beauty that is unfolding right before your eyes and you aren’t aware of it because you are too busy to notice or have become indifferent?
What about your perspective would change if you just walked “the 50 yards to the beach”?
What would you see differently if you waited and watched for just “10 minutes more”?
Sunsets don’t wait! Your One Beautiful Life won’t wait either. Now is your time.
Sometimes you just need someone to walk with you those “50 yards to the beach” for a new perspective and remind you to stay just “10 minutes more”.
I’m great at beach walks…want to talk?
(Pictures courtesy of my husband and I and Watermark Photography, taken on Captiva Island.)