Sunrise side

Being on the west side of Otter Lake, I am treated nearly every day to a spectacular sunrise. They vary, of course, depending on cloud cover and what weather is moving out from the day before. No two are ever quite the same. It’s also fascinating to follow the sun as it moves north to south on the horizon as the seasons change.

These long days of daylight as we head toward the summer solstice are sublime. Dawn arrives shortly before 6 a.m. and the sun doesn’t fully set until after 10 p.m. I have always been a person who rises at first light and retires soon after dusk so these are my “make hay while the sun shines” days of the year.

I think I’ve always appreciated the sunrises more than the sunsets because I figure only a fraction of people are witnessing them. While probably 95 percent of people are privy to the sunsets, it’s probably less than half who witness the sunrise every day. Many are still in a deep sleep or may be awake but too caught up in their morning routines to pay attention to that glowing orb rising in the sky.

Sunrises signal the start of a new day, full of possibilities and surprises. In the famous novel The Sun Also Rises, Hemingway wrote:

“You can’t get away from yourself by moving from one place to another.”

Now there’s some truth to ponder as you take in your next sunrise.

Dawn.

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Photos courtesy Terhi Tuominen and Manninen archives.