The other night I was able to enjoy the sunset with some friends on the lake. It wasn't what I would call radiant or dramatic by any means. It was more like a peaceful closure. A simple and gradual decrescendo to yet another beautiful day.
I was afraid we had already missed it as we walked down to the water's edge. My friends (who are much more experienced in lake sunsets than I) reassured me that we had in fact not missed it but were right on time.
The pale, late-evening sky slowly shifted to darker shades of blue and purple. The sun sank closer to the horizon from which it came and in doing so lit the edge of the world ablaze with gentle tongues of yellow and orange flame.
After the day's finale of light had ended, wisps of smoky clouds were left suspended against the pink and purple sky as a last remnant of the closing day.
I guess not everything is meant to go out with a bang or end in a spectacular fashion. Leonardo da Vinci did say "Simplicity is the greatest sophistication," after all.
The world we live in seamlessly and beautifully shifts from one day to another without knowing what the next will hold. But one thing that is for certain: every hard day ends with a beautiful sunset.
