Hope in the Sun
The summer sun is something I absolutely look forward to in the morning. Waking up with a peek of sun coming in through the window gives me a sense of hope of the day. It makes me feel like something really good is going to happen.
The benefits of sunlight are many. It can ease mild forms of depression. It can lift the spirit after a storm or rain spell. It, of course, causes our flowers to rise up and bloom, and it does the exact same for our children. Just enough sunlight during the daylight hours lends itself to an improved rest at night.
We also know that too much sunlight, unmanaged, can lead to skin diseases like cancer or sunburn. As beneficial as the sun is to our overall health and well-being is as harmful it can be if unmanaged.
It makes me think that in understanding sunshine, I still don’t understand how something so good can also be harmful. It is a mystery to me.
Mystery or not, the sunshine bears hope. I’ve even been thinking of ways to share the sunshine.
• Take a stroll hand-in-hand with a loved one, young or old, on a sunny day.
• Teach my children the simple pleasure of watching the sun rise and set.
• Enjoying lunch with a friend at an outdoor café, wearing sunglasses and floppy hats, and laughing.
I figured out that hope in the sun transcends clichés and pithy sayings. Hope in the sun is one of those necessary things that keeps us going, and helps us feel alive even when circumstances say otherwise.
This summer, I pray you make wonderful memories for you and yours. My prayer is that you make them with hope in the sun. Don’t forget to take a few selfies while you’re at it.
