A view from my early morning sunrise in Myrtle Beach.
The sun rises 365 times a year. Many of those times are spent in deep sleep, obscured by clouds or buildings and trees that block the sun and its colors.
Even if you can't see it, the sun rises as expected every morning, so everything is perfectly covered in light when the rest of the world wakes up. But it's most beautiful when everyone else misses it.
Sunsets are commonly seen by many people because the world is still awake and active when they occur. But only the observant and those who know how to recognize the beauty of a sunrise will experience one.
5:45 a.m. The alarm echoes off the walls of a small condo bedroom that can accommodate a family of four. Quiet movements line the hallway to the living room, where a window looks out onto the awakening ocean. The sky is a painting by Athena, reflected in the gently lapping ocean. The sound of the breaking waves in the wind sings a song that only the most beautiful moments can imitate. It calls anyone nearby to come closer to the forgotten beauty of the ocean and the sky.
The quiet footsteps leave the apartment, heading for the elevators and the elegance and tranquility beyond. Only a few other footsteps crunch through the patchy, sand-covered grass in the early hour when all is quiet.
The steps stop at a point just before the soft sand turns into matted, wet sand. The cold sand is covered with a towel for comfort, and a book lies on a page where a phone lies.
Before the mind wanders, it reflects. Not on everything that is happening, has happened, and will happen, but on the current state of the world and simple, accompanying thoughts. There is a scent of wet salt, so strong that it goes beyond smell, so it can be felt on every available surface. The waves have a melodic pattern that sings back to the sound of the soft wind. The sky is a work that not even Picasso or Da Vinci could replicate. The colors complement the unique blue of the water so well that it creates a line of contentment along the horizon. It seems as though the colors change with each blink, but in a way that is imperceptible until it is over. The seagulls circle the area unobtrusively, searching for undisturbed crabs burrowed into the sand, and flying over to find fish jumping through the splintered waves. Before the mind can even move on to the next thought, the view and the area captures it again with the stunning nature it beholds. A perfectly formed seashell or a crevice in the water that could well be a sea creature of some kind. The book is forgotten and only a minute is reserved for the phone, just to remember the value of that time. The mind is kept clear of any fear, worry and external thoughts. Only the simplest and purest thoughts remain, which are floating around in the back of the mind most of the time.
So many miss it because they are sleeping, working, or using technology. Even those who are willing to admire it may really miss it. Some also miss it because they admire it too often, because by then its rarity and significance have been lost. When school starts again, the grind continues, the late nights are filled with work and people, and sunny, clear skies are replaced by snow-covered clouds, the sunrises get stuck behind the trees and sleep, and only during busy times can one catch a glimpse of it.
Whenever I see that silent, magnificent sunrise again, I won't miss it for the world, but until then, I will carry the lesson I learned from it with me for the rest of my life.
