Celebrating the Ordinary – Twilight

Today is day six of the celebrating the ordinary challenge posed by Marie of Journeying Beyond Breast Cancer. I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how enjoyable this exercise has been for me. I’ve enjoyed both aspects, the writing part and the reading what others write part.

While I’m still way behind most contributors, I’ve managed to tweak out a post here and there. This is day six, but my day three. I’m a part-timer at best.

I’m cheating a bit on the first photo below as I actually took it about two weeks ago. It’s already featured above on my blog’s banner. Old photos are fine too, though, because as Marie mentioned, there are no rules in this challenge. Love that!

All summer long I’ve been meaning to get out and snap a few shots of the sun setting over our little lake here in Wisconsin. Of course I had all summer long to do this, but in my usual procrastinating form, I waited.

One evening about two weeks ago, I suddenly felt a pang of that old August urgency. So I grabbed my camera and headed out to our boathouse. I stood there by myself marveling at the ordinary sight I had been taking for granted most evenings all summer long and snapped off a few shots.

Inadvertently I had actually missed sunset. The sun had already disappeared somewhere beyond the horizon, but what I managed to capture instead was twilight.

Technically speaking, twilight is that period of semi-darkness; the time just after the sun goes down, but before total darkness sets in.

Twilight gently nudges in the darkness.

I love the mysteriously beautiful and tranquil moments twilight brings. I love the feeling of serenity as darkness quietly takes over the landscape and daylight just as silently disappears from the skies. I love the “in-between-ness” feel of twilight. I love the stillness and solitude as one day comes to an end, while at the same time there is promise another will soon unfold.

Twilight offers closure and promise at the same time.

And for some reason twilight doesn’t allow for thoughts or worries about cancer to seep in. Such thoughts and worries are somehow “stuck in-between” as well. The darkness and solitude of night often bring worries. New days often do as well, but during twilight such things must “wait.”

Twilight is the perfect time to just be.

It turns out there’s nothing ordinary about twilight at all.

What is your favorite time of day or night?

When did you last experience the splendor of twilight? (and I don’t mean the book or movie!)