We are a long way south of the Arctic Circle here, but for a few weeks a year near the Winter Solstice we get some very “Arctic” looking skies, especially the sunrises.  The sun rises slowly this time of year up here, not just late.  There is more time to appreciate how the light looks different when the sky is being lit from below the horizon.

These pictures were taken on a -20°f morning as I stepped out to fetch the paper.  The views are to the West and Southwest respectively where the clouds caught that sunlight coming up from below.

It only lasted a few minutes, but taking a moment to appreciate that moment can have a lasting and positive impact on how a person feels.  Grand adventures are grand of course, but most of us aren’t able to have them all the time.  These small adventures though are always there for us if we can just spare a moment to notice.

This could have been an annoyance; retrieving the paper on a bitter cold morning.  Instead it became a moment of happy celebration of the season.  A chance to breathe the cold air, feel the sting of it on exposed skin and exist in that moment of faint light and frozen stillness.

You may not be able to get away on a grand adventure today, but look around and see if maybe you haven’t been overlooking small moments of adventure in your every day life.  Taking the time to consciously enjoy being alive is always time well spent!