After enjoying a glorious day of Autumn sunshine here in the hills and forests surrounding my home I decided to take a seat on my back porch and watch its final act. Sunsets here in the mountains are a beauty to behold. They are not as sudden as the ocean or desert sunsets where nightfall follows so quickly after Sol drops over the horizon.

Here it is much more gradual. This evening it started when the sun dropped low enough in the sky to be partially blocked by the towering oaks a hundred yards behind my house. The ground below them grew shaded and the shadows slowly started to creep down the wood line surrounding the meadow and old graveyard behind my porch. Yet, while all this was happening beams of sunlight were still peeking through the branches and lighting up parts of the forest on the other side of my home. The red and golden maple leaves seemed to delight in this last kiss of sunshine and glowed even brighter than usual. I watched peacefully while this dance of light and dark, sunbeams and shadows continued on while the evening air cooled in the growing twilight. Last of all the sky itself began to change slowly going from blue and yellow to red, pink, and purple and finally to black.

As this Heavenly show ended the night settled in and the stars began to appear in the sky. I pulled my coat closer around me for warmth and smiled. I was sorry that it was over, but I knew that tomorrow the sun would rise again to warm and brighten the Earth once more.

Each morning we too are given the chance to let the sun rise in our souls. We are given the choice to live in God's love and light. We are given the opportunity to share our love and make this world a warmer, brighter, and better place. And when the sun finally sets on our lives here we are also given a home to go to where the light is eternal and the love never ends.