Question for this week: What does stooping to focus on something else do for me?
Ever since I was young, I have been enamored with the sky. There are so many different aspects to it, the clouds, the shape, the colour, the fog. Whether it is night or day, I find myself sneaking glimpses at its beauty. However, that’s not always the case. It can get so busy during our workdays that simply stopping and looking up isn’t something we consider doing. The other day, I was working in my living room when I noticed that the sky was absolutely stunning. My roommate (who is a post-degree elementary education student) was busy doing schoolwork at the table when I said, “Look at the sky!”
She looked up and said, “Wow, that’s beautiful.” And then she said something that I think we all need to do: she said, “I think I need to look up more often.”
Isn’t that the point? We spend so long looking at things that are meant for productivity or enjoyment, like schoolwork, work, or even our phones, that we miss the beautiful things that are right in front of us. Don’t get me wrong, those things are inherently important, but if we don’t notice things that have natural beauty and importance, what does that do to us?
I personally love the sky, and it boasts so much beauty in every season, and reminds me how big the world truly is, and honestly, it just makes me smile and check in with myself and my surroundings. It gives me a second to pause and breathe and say Isn’t that pretty or look at those colours! Below I have some of my favorite pictures I have taken from the sky, some are recent and some are from a while ago, which one do you see the most beauty in?
I feel like when I stop and look at something, and I mean truly look at it. I’m tuning out all other distractions and giving myself a moment to simply breathe and reset; this fills me with extreme gratitude.
Photos Taken by Carlee Cleveland
So my challenge for you is to look up and see the beauty in something that is always there.