I love a pretty day when the weather is fallish, the sky so blue and clear, the clouds randomly sketched by Father Sky, white where their tops are kissed by the sun, shaded pale gray and lavender on their bottoms, floating separately across the horizon, not joining hands or blending together. I sat in the lady den watching all the birds and the beautiful sky this afternoon. I had filled up all the feeders with fresh seeds so the cardinals and finches were happy. The chickadees and titmice are still enjoying the feeders near the gardenia bush. Mr. and Mrs. Downy Woodpecker are visiting the seed cake feeders. Kat sat under the bird feeders watching the birds but behaved herself and didn’t kill any birds.

Mother Nature blushed the sky at sunset in watercolor layers of peach, melted vanilla, and turquoise, a Neapolitan sherbet sunset, the shades of color thinning out as they blended together toward the blue heavens. The sun changed her dress three times before she was content enough with her gown choice to begin her walk across the sunset’s pageant stage. The sun was introduced first on stage dressed in a pageant gown of lemon yellow silk. As she stood beaming her blinding yellow light, she quickly changed into a peach taffeta gown and began her walk down the horizon on the arm of a tuxedo dressed Father Sky. Still dissatisfied with her choice of gowns, she slowly changed into a formal chiffon gown of muted tangerine, rolled down the horizon, and flounced her hemline of peach silk ruffles across the sky, tinting the tree line a pale tangerine. Father Sky tucked the sun in her cloud covers, kissed her goodnight, turned the day’s light off, and rushed to wake the night sky. Under the directions of Father Sky, the luminous moon and sparkling stars hung on the black velvet sky canvas stage and began their pageant of darkness.

I am so thankful for the view out my windows. I can see the sky and the clouds and the beautiful little songbirds visiting the feeders. I can see sunshine and rain and trees and grass and the glorious sunsets and sunrises. I feel sorry for those who look out their windows and see the spoils of war, the landscapes of bombed buildings and structures, the sad faces of the children living in a time of conflict. If you have a dark view out your window, I pray the rays of sunshine will warm your heart and help your view change.

Psalms 18:2 reads, “For it is you who light my lamp; the Lord my God lightens my darkness.” There’s a lot of darkness in life. God’s love can help light the darkness. We are bound to each other beyond death for our love doesn’t stop just because we are separated. For those of us entering the fall and winter holidays without our loved ones let’s have the joy of knowing we’ll see them again in heaven to set the pace for this new year, to light our own little candles of hope, helping spread God’s love to light the darkness.

“God is light. In him no darkness at all.” — Rebecca Brand