I learned something in Zanzibar- light proceeds the coming of the sun.
The squad took a few days vacay before starting month 10 to rest and restore for the final leg of our journey. Some of us went to the private side of the island to a secluded beachfront hotel. Picture white sand soft as flour, an ocean with a myriad of different crystal clear blues, only a handful of people, a constant exactly strong enough breeze and all of this only steps from the front porch of your one story private house/room, i.e. PARADISE. So, our first morning we woke up early to catch the sunrise. When I came out to the beach it was already completely bright and daytime-ish. Disappointed, I said to a squadmate that we must be too late. She explained that first the light comes and then you see the sun. Hmmm…had I not paid attention during the other handful of sunrises I've seen? I don't remember it looking like 9 or 10am and then the sun comes. I doubted her, but since I didn't see the big orange ball in the sky I sat and waited.
She was right. MAAAAN was she right! The sun begins touching and changing the landscape and exciting your eyes long before it is actually seen. It chases away all the darkness and creates brilliant Sistine Chapel-esque murals of colorful light in the clouds. It builds anticipation and a tangible expectancy. It's stupid beautiful! It's just the opening act though!
Then it happens. You see the curve of deep, firey, reddish-orange-yellow creeping up from the horizon. You're speechless. Your jaw hangs. Your skin tingles from the sudden burst of heat. You find that the only thing you can do is make guttoral noises to express your awe and admiration. You can't look at it too long, but you can't bring yourself to look away. It has to be admired in bits and pieces or else your eyes will melt. We are physically incapable of staring at the sun. Our bodies just cannot handle the greatness. It's magnificent!
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Flash forward a few weeks to Vanessa, Rosa and I walking up a hillside in Thailand to watch God say good morning to us in the special way that only He can do [the pics with grass above are from this day]. It was yet again indescribably ________(insert word that can't even begin to encompass the artistry of creation). At one point, Rosa shared something a friend told her about sunsets- they're a reflection of what's already been accomplished. The beauty your eye devours is the after effects of residual light playing around in the sky once the sun has sunk. Even when the sun has gone, it continues to amaze us.
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No wonder ancient cultures (and some present day folk still do) worshipped the sun as (a) god. It's simply their spirits picking up on the type & shadow- sun; Son. Nothing's better than the Real Thing though. Creation is merely a reflection- a dope one- of its Creator. Take a nature walk somewhere and let God reveal Himself to you. Open your eyes to the truth written in the trees, on the wind, through the sound of flowing water. Yeah, I know it's a little hippie-ish, but rock with it and try something new. No worries, I haven't joined a cult. O_o
