Sunrise

Unplugged. Day 5 .

Watching the sun rise over the Atlantic from the vantage point of wooden rocking chairs, I was struck by how much folks were missing.

As they rushed down at 5:50 a.m. clad in pajamas and swimwear, making their way to the best camera angles, setting up tripods in uneven sand, adjusting shutter speed and apertures, primping for the best selfie; they were surely missing the Experience, capital “E”.

Did they notice the cloud formation on the horizon that made it look like you were seeing a small mountain range in the middle of the ocean ?

Did they see the gathering of seagulls in a particular spot that indicated a cluster of fish remnants left by the feeding of a large marine animal ? ( I didn’t say it…shark).

Did they see the pattern of light reflected on the ocean surface?

Did they notice the brown pelicans that had been swept north by the turbulent winds of a fading tropical storm Erika ?

Did they really smell the salt air, or feel the ocean mist ?

Oil Painting. Randy Hulshizer.

Most of all, did they realize that you cannot capture the grandeur of the stream of color in the sky that only nature can provide ?

Maybe you need an artist’s palate to do it justice; very much like the piece called “Peaceful Sunrise” shown here .

The actual sunrise took less than 5 minutes to break the horizon.

I wonder how many even looked away from their smart phones for a brief minute to just take in the wonder and beauty that we all take for granted ?

My husband and I did.

We held hands, sipped coffee, and rocked those aging wooden chairs.

And it was glorious.