remember-a-day

A few weeks ago, we were driving home and the sky was painted teal, peach, and purple.  Everything in sight was alive with passion.  Days later we were smothered by a blanket of grey, the world felt hushed and slow. Every night, the world’s largest canvas is adorned with radiant hues, because God is an artist.

Sunrises and sunsets will happen without our acknowledgement and we don’t have to notice, but if you are searching for beauty in the world, twice a day, you know where to look.

I decided that I wanted to record the colors of the sunset every night. I’m not always in a prime photo location, but I stop what I am doing and look out the window.  I watch the first signs streak across the blue and notice how the colors dazzle until the light meets the horizon..  Then, I enter the date and colors into a note on my phone.

For a week now, I've been observing this practice. I suppose it is less about the recording of the colors and more about the noticing.  Too many stunners have passed without me stopping to say, hey as usual, great sunset tonight, God.   In reality, days will be missed, but no worries, another one is coming soon, another chance to marvel, to pause, to see, to be thankful, and to remember.

In the summer, I made an Index card calendar/journal.  At night I write down one thing that happened on that day. (Find in here).  Often, I write, spent the day at home with the kids, but  there was the time Hudson helped me unload the dishwasher {on Saturday} or when my baby girl ate an olive and loved it. It’s just life, normal and silly, but everyday life remembered is never ordinary.  I keep it near my bed and usually jot down one sentence before going to sleep or right away the next morning.  And ten years from now, I’ll remember where we spent Valentines day, because, do you ever remember that?

The thing is this, the act of remembering, it’s an opportunity for gratitude, to notice the blessings or challenges of this life.  It’s a brief pause to find perspective, to savor a moment, to collect joy.

I wonder, if you were to document one thing daily, what would it be? How would you do it?  A journal? an e-mail to yourself? a blog post? a photo?  If you are inspired to start collecting these tiny little pieces of wonder, I’d love to hear about it.

• January 26- soft blue, purple, purple grey, and pink
• January 27- blue-grey, pink, cream
• January 28- pink and grey