60 Before 60 Project: #37 - Watch the Sunset
It happens every day. The sun rises then the sun sets. But how much do we really pay attention to this?
I know I don’t. I just take the whole thing for granted. Sure, I’ll occasionally complain when the sun isn’t out and it’s raining but beyond that I really don’t give it much thought beyond whether I should be putting on sunscreen.
I decided to change this while we were at our cottage.
We are fortunate that our cottage is on the side of the lake that we get to watch the sunset. So for my 60 Before 60 Project, I consciously decided that I would make a point of watching the sunset while I was there.
Along with being something beautiful to see, it turns out that watching sunrises and sunsets are actually also very good for us. Some research from Exeter University found;
“Our research indicates that getting up a bit earlier for sunrise or timing a walk to catch sunset could be well worth the effort – the 'wow' factor associated with these encounters might unlock small but significant bumps in feelings of beauty and awe, which could in turn have positive impacts for mental wellbeing.".
Beautiful sunrises and sunsets can evoke having this sense of “awe” which can help improve our mood, increase our positive emotions and decrease our stress.
So for a few nights at the cottage, I made a point of sitting quietly by the lake and watching the sun go down. I found the first night was a bit unnerving. I kept thinking about all the other things I could be doing. But by the second night, I started to just relax, breathe and reflect.
As I watched the sunset, I felt like the earth was giving me a different live art show every night. The colours in the sky were never the same. And as the sun slid behind the tress and darkness started to emerge, the sky would then turn a dark shade of pink.
I’ve tried to capture and share some of these sunsets through time lapse photography on my phone. But I'm afraid it just didn’t do the sunset or my experience justice.
