Blue sky

My eyes open for the first time of the day. With gravity pressing me further into my bed and pillow, I muster the energy and turn my head, lifting only my eyes toward the morning sky. Gravity mysteriously releases its grip on the corners of my mouth as I grin, looking out to the sky, the blue sky. I am telling you, those few seconds of inner struggle, whether or not to open my eyes, whether or not to fight for a few more minutes sleep, can be turned in an instant, when my eyes drink in the brilliant blue sky.

The other day I stopped by parents house, the house where I grew up, we moved there when I was five years old. I was sitting outside with my wife and the kids, talking to my dad. The afternoon was just about perfect. It was sunny, clear, deep blue sky, temperature in the seventies, with no humidity, and great company all around me. As I sat there taking in the conversation, I looked around the yard. I looked at the same trees I saw when I was a kid playing in that yard. Actually there are far fewer trees shaping the yard now, as a result of ice and wind storms in the last couple of years. Even so, I looked up through the leaves of a big maple tree to see the bits of rich blue sky that showed through. Those glimpses, that blue, it took me back to a warm, comfortable place associated with my growing years at home. For as far back as I can remember the clear blue sky, especially when set behind the leaves of trees, has been the place I would most like to set my gaze when daydreaming, deep thinking, or even relaxing. Even nowadays I look out through the oak trees now and then to find that patch of blue that soothes my mind.

Think about the blue and the effect it has. So many things look better set against the blue with immeasurable depth. A hot air balloon draws you in and dares you not to look at it floating in the blue sky. The shimmering reflection off of a huge airplane soaring above looks better in the blue sky. The arching flight of a clean white baseball makes you feel forever a kid when it’s set against a blue sky. The twisting wisps of smoke rising from a distant chimney look inviting against a crisp blue sky. The American flag is a sight to see anytime, yet when it is gently waving in the breeze with a blue sky backdrop it’s perfect. A football spirals through the air on a perfect trajectory toward a receivers hands, and it looks exactly right against the autumn blue sky. The high blue sky is a beautiful backdrop for a handful of hawks soaring on the updrafts. A kite flying high and free looks best on a canvas of blue sky.

Even the clouds, drifting, shaping and reshaping look best against the blue sky. I am certain that God got it right when blue was chosen as the color we see in the clear skies overhead.

Back in August of this year, my oldest son, Steve, and I, drove to California to help his brother, Ryan, move into an apartment in Fremont, California, where he is living while attending Ohlone College. Steve and I took five and a half days to drive out there. Even with a 3,000 plus mile trip ahead of us, we were both anxious to see things we had not seen before. As we drove further and further west, the skies opened up to us. There was mile after mile of sky meeting the horizon, as far as we could see, in every direction. It was impressive to say the least. Soft white clouds just floating in blue skies with nothing, not even a tree, to hide any of the view.

We hit the mountains in Colorado and Utah where the massive peaks reach thousands of feet up into the blue sky.

We drove over Monarch Mountain in Colorado, at more than 11,000 feet high, and there was still a bit of snow on the slope, which looked amazing against the blues of the sky.

There were storms rolling up the mountain side that acted like some sort of filter that created different shades of blue sky.

The definition of peaks we saw in Nevada and California, against that same blue sky were just breath-taking. There is no hiding detail when the picture you see is on an easel of clear blue sky. The light is right, the shadows and tones are true, when taking in a landscape framed by the blue sky.

So, you can see how I feel about the blue sky. It is calming. It expands further than we can see. It is uplifting. After days of rain or clouds, the blue sky is a refreshing sight. I am guessing that the clear blue sky will always be a place where I will look for answers, where thoughts formulate into plans and ideas, where relaxing takes over and all else slows down, where the color is just the way it should be. Hours will be spent staring at and taking in the deep blue sky. Theodore and I scan the blue skies to see the source of the sound when he hears an airplane overhead. Jacqueline and I look quickly to a blue sky when she catches the glimpse of a bird darting above the trees. We haven’t even reached the point where we lay on the grass and look at the stars or the shapes of clouds against the blue sky. It is vast, it is seen around the world, it defies measurement, yet it is my own little place where my mind can run away and hide in peace, it’s the blue sky.