Simply Blue

I had planned to put this week's simple pleasure here last week to coincide with our Colonial Blues tablescape. (I'm "themey" like that...) You may recall, however, that my focus was interrupted by the simple pleasure of being a mom, and the blue themed simple pleasure was put on the back burner.

I'm OK with that.

I don't want my life to reflect my blog;
 I want my blog to reflect my life.

I'm sharing my simply blue pleasure this morning instead.

Here it is.
Capturing the blue hour.

This simple pleasure is actually very new to me. Until reading about it in blogland several months ago, I didn't even know such a thing as the blue hour even existed.  But it does, and it exists with amazing consistency.

The blue hour is the name for the window of opportunity that God opens every evening and morning, just before sunrise, and just after sunset. It is the phrase that describes the few moments twice a day when the sky becomes an incredibly deep blanket of blue.

It. Is. Beautiful.

When I first saw pictures of the blue hour, I fell so in love with it that I tried to catch it spontaneously. I was certain that I'd be able to capture it most beautifully over an open field or other such quiet space.  I kept my eyes open, and when I thought that I might be in the moment, I would race to the nearest field with the shiny red Kodak, point, and click.

Nothing.
I blamed the shiny red Kodak.

Finally, I did what I should have done in the first place; I did a little research. In so doing, I discovered two things. First, the blue hour is easily predicted. In fact, when I enter my zip code at bluehoursite.com, I am given the precise time, roughly 30 minutes twice a day, in which the blue hour is visible in my local sky.

Unlike most simple pleasures, this one is intentional, not spontaneous.

I also discovered that the blue hour is best captured when it is illuminated. No wonder I couldn’t capture it over an open field! I had been expecting God to fly solo.

It doesn’t work that way.
Think about it:

To capture the blue hour,

you must look for the Glory of God

reflected in the light of men.

I can hardly stand it.

So now that I have the rules down, I plan this simple pleasure.

I seek out the illuminated places,

 and make an appointment with God.

Here’s the blue hour over our local courthouse.

Here it is in Macon.

This is the steeple over the church that The Practical One attends while in school.

Look at the difference mere minutes make.

Here's the same spot just a few minutes later.

This one was taken over the Hay House, also in Macon. We went there recently for a Parent’s Weekend dinner. I almost missed this. I thought the show was over for the night but stopped the car and got out when I saw this curtain call.

I am so enthralled by the blue hour that I find myself gushing about it. I’m 48 years old, I lamented to the husband. How in the world could I go 48 years and not know that such a beautiful thing existed?

Silly woman, he explained.

You weren’t looking.

Capturing the blue hour is this week’s simple pleasure.

*****

Sharing with Dayle at A Collection of This and That.

Clickity click to see the other simple pleasures.

It's a weekly treat.