I've always been enamored by the skies. Whether it's shooting stars or sunsets or rainclouds, I've always loved looking up. I don't know why. Maybe it's some desire to escape, to soar above this world. Maybe it's just the vastness of it all. Maybe it's the inability to measure what's in a cloud, or to imagine that the moon is shining down only for me. For whatever reason, I've always loved it. Before digital cameras, I'd routinely fill up rolls of film with pictures of the sky. Now I just fill up my phone.
I was riding down the freeway with my family the other day when I saw a massive cloud churning across the sky. I tried to snap a picture, but a wall of passing trees was too quick and obscured everything. So I had to wait a few miles before I caught sight of it again. When I finally did, it had changed to this:
I know it's not a perfect likeness, but my first thought was, "It's FALCOR THE LUCKDRAGON!" Now, The Neverending Story might be one of those movies that people love because they grew up with it. But being one of those people who did grow up with it, I'm proud to say I love it. If you haven't seen it, you should still check it out. It's a fantastic tale, even if the filmmaking effects don't quite hold up. But back to the point, if I hadn't been looking up, I would have missed this pretty spectacular cloud.
There's an Ani Difranco lyric that goes "When I look down, I just miss all the good stuff. And when I look up, I just trip over things." I'm not saying we should wander around with our heads in the clouds all the time. Everyone has responsibilities and I'm not advocating we abandon them. But once in a while, take a break from checking Facebook on your phone and look up, look around. See what beauty and inspiration is out there.
You're probably going to trip over more things. But I'd rather do that than miss all the good stuff.
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