DARK CLOUDS

After a day of cloud and wind and rain
Sometimes the setting sun breaks out again
... Then like a ruby from the horizon's ring,
Drops down into the night. ~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The clouds came in dark and low this evening and looked like a giant claw ready to pluck the sun out of the sky. As more clouds crept in, they formed a dark and whispy frame around the golden setting sun.

ON A CLEAR DAY

The sea pronounces something, over and over, in a hoarse whisper; I cannot quite make it out. ~Annie Dillard

On a day when the sun is shining and the air is dry and clear, there is no place more beautiful to be than at the beach. On this day the waters of the Gulf are crisp, and clean, and clear and the most gorgeous, gemlike turquoise color. Sometimes the elements of nature align in such a way as to almost reach a level of perfection. This is such a day. How lucky we are to be able to see such beauty and experience the peace and serenity that only the sea can provide.

FIRST OF THE YEAR

“Sunsets are so beautiful that they almost seem as if we were looking through the gates of Heaven.” -- John Lubbock

Day four of 2009 and we had our first beautiful New Year sunset.