Collateral Beauty

I am not a morning person. Others in my family are and they love being this way. 

They pop up like a daisy almost every day. 

This used to be me, when I was young, and I would start the day early.

Once in a while I do need to get up before dawn to get to work or travel now. That is when I see things like this, the collateral beauty in the world. 

The light blue and orange melting across the sky stopped me in my tracks as I walked out the door to begin my day.

What else did I see? 

The wispy clouds, tops of trees and a ragged outline of mountains. 

All of this turned my head

Yes, all of this turned my head to the left as I was supposed to be dashing.

Oh yeah, the thing I often end up doing at times. 

Dashing to and fro. 

Popping into one thing and then another 

What if I choose to look at the collateral beauty, the lovely edges that pull me up while other events make me melt? 

Like these clouds melting above the jagged skyline. 

It reminds me of when I was in grade school, and I would sleep over at a friend’s house during the summer months. 

We would sleep outside in our sleeping bags, laugh as the night started and then shiver as time progressed. 

I remember watching the stars overhead wondering how much colder it could get. 

Bytheway. It got so much colder. 

Was there anything beautiful

Was there anything beautiful to see in the meantime? 

It turns out there was lots to see and think about that turned my head on those summer nights. 

This helped keep me burrowed deep in my sleeping bag as I worked to stay warm and wait for morning to come. 

I found star constellations like the Big Dipper and tried to find others that I had been taught to find while camping with family and friends. 

This did give my mind something to do while the night got darker and colder. 

Then, when the night felt like it was not going to end.

The sun would start to peek over the mountains. The summer warmth was coming back.

We had survived! Success was achieved. 

Here’s my question to each of you.

Do you feel like a night is never going to end

Do you feel like a night is never going to end now and yet you have to get up early to pop into a new day? 

Experiences can feel like this to many, including me. 

Perhaps there is an unknown situation before you. 

It could be ongoing pain, friends who are going through their own long night. 

Illness, mental health needs, disabilities. 

New transformation and growth.

Life is an ongoing path of melting moments, deep colors and jagged outlines. 

When it feels like I want to burrow deeper into a warm space and peek out only to see the Stars at night that have brought great memories to me in the past, I work to get curious about each step before me.

My sight flows to the left and I see the gentle orange and blue. 

I notice that the jagged outlines are the mountains I love. The trees will bud with new hope after the long night of incredibly cold times. 

My friends, I also know this. 

The piece I am beginning to learn is that even after a long dark cold night. 

There is collateral beauty, 

Even if it makes me melt like the clouds against the light blue sky.