Chasing Sunset

Tonight, for whatever reason, I found myself pondering what the hell I was doing...

In life, in love, in my job, my personal aspirations, my family and my friends.

I wasn't necessarily worrying, or spiralling, or caught up in a depressive mentality. Alas, I was simply contemplating where I was right now, and what was next for me. Whether I was on the right path, where it would lead, and when I would get there.

I was too focused on my feet, on where my journey was taking me, that I temporarily forgot. I forgot to enjoy exactly where I was right now, no matter where I was going or where I had been.

But thankfully, life sent me a little reminder.

As I passed the upstairs window, consumed by my own thoughts, I was met by the most beautiful sunset I had seen in a long time.
The sky was on fire, and it sparked a fire in me.

Instantly, I knew that I wanted to seize this moment.
Without a second thought, I grabbed my keys and jumped into the car.
And so began my journey to chase the sunset.

I drove along familiar roads, and unfamiliar roads.
I drove without any thought or care of where I was going, or how long it would last.
I drove because I wanted to enjoy the moment, not the destination.
And in the process, I had the chance to look up and savour the wonder of my surroundings. 

I meandered around meaningless locations for an hour, just to stretch out every last minute of beauty as the sun bid farewell to the day. And when it was over, and the darkness of the night consumed the sky, it dawned on me.

The perfect analogy to my predicament.

All too often, we are entirely engrossed in getting where we are going as quickly as possible.

We speed by, we look for short cuts and we race along in life, determined to arrive in good time and not be trailing behind the rest of society. We fluster and rush from milestone to milestone, always fixated on the next leg of our journey.

So much so, that we forget to stop and appreciate exactly where we are right now.
We fail to cherish the beauty, the achievement, and the possibility, of simply being on this journey.
We neglect to look up, to take a minute and enjoy the view.
Because we are surrounded by more enchanting wonder than one could ever begin to describe.

Tonight, I was sent a reminder of the ephemeral beauty of life. I had the pleasure of watching a sky on fire.

Tomorrow, let it be your turn to look up, and enjoy the beauty of the world around you.
Because this place you're at right now, it's pretty wonderful.

So chase that sunset.

Thanks for reading, over and out...