“Two minutes to sunset!” our friend announced, and we all marched out to his deck to watch the sun go down over the Pacific. Seeing the green flash when the sun sets happens, but not frequently. I have seen it once before. I have seen the sunset from this deck at least 50 times. Will we see it today?
It has been quite a week in Southern California. Days of non-stop rain with the huge waves, landslides and then a small earthquake right off this coast. The much of the beach has been washed out to sea. All phenomena that is rare but not foreign to SOCal along with all the daily beautiful.
We took pictures of us together to add to all the other shots we have taken on this deck as the sun sets while keeping an eye on the sun as it slowly and then quickly dropped to the horizon. As the last bit of the sun dropped I saw 3 quick green flashes and it was gone. We were all quiet and then all talking at once. “Wow!” “It was beautiful!”. “I told Joe last week, yes, the green flash is real and he didn’t believe me”. I just stood there quietly in appreciation.
Of course no one had their camera out then. We didn’t want a picture of the green flash, we wanted to SEE the green flash. It is the kind of image that stays in your brain – no need to be reminded by a snap.
To me it was like the beautiful “aha” moment when you, me, someone gets a flash of clarity around an issue they have struggled with for a long time. Being totally present and mindful in the moment is a path to this level of clarity. Taking a few minutes each day to really listen to that bird singing outside your window. Or, tasting the orange you are eating, or smelling the coffee you ground. It seems to open up a pathway in your brain to creativity. It doesn’t happen every day. It is rare and beautiful. You have to be ready in the moment like we were on the deck. This week embrace that moment.
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