A Midwest Sunset

Is There Anything Like a Midwest Sunset?

I’m probably pretty biased. I’ve always been partial to sunsets, especially a summer sunset over Clear Lake. And my camera roll on my phone can definitely back that up.  But it’s not just Clear Lake. I took the photo I’m sharing with this post right here in Mason City. I honestly can’t tell you how many times I’ve been driving somewhere, seen an incredible sunset, and literally had to pull over, get out of my car and just take it in. There is something about a Midwest sunset. Maybe it’s the wide-open sky. Maybe it’s the way the colors stretch forever. Or maybe it’s just that it makes you stop for a minute. And I needed that reminder when I took this particular photo.

I was having a pretty rough day. Nothing major in the grand scheme of things, but enough that I was frustrated and focused on everything that was going wrong. Then I saw this. So I stopped. I took a deep breath. And for a few minutes, I just looked at it.It made me think about the bigger picture and how absolutely amazing this world is. Yes, we are going to have problems. Some days are harder than others. But there is also so much beauty happening around us every single day.

One of my friends is giving a speech soon about blessings. Her message is to take time each day to think of at least one blessing in your life. And I thought about that as I was dealing with my car being in the shop for the second time this year. My first thought was, Ugh. This is frustrating. But then I thought… at least I have a vehicle. And I’m blessed that I can afford to fix it. What a blessing. It’s so easy to focus on the negative. Unfortunately, I think that comes naturally to a lot of us. We notice the things that aren’t going right, the things that are frustrating us, the things we wish were different.

I’m always impressed by the people in my life who seem to roll with the punches so well. They acknowledge the hard stuff, but they don’t let it consume them. They find the positive. They find the lesson. They find something to be grateful for. I want to be more like that. I remember working at a restaurant when I was younger. I always found it funny when the owner would get super crabby when we were really busy. I remember thinking, Isn’t this a good thing?!  Yes, we’re busy. Yes, it’s hard to keep up. But that also means you’re making money! Isn’t that what you want?

It makes me laugh now because I think about how often we do the same thing in our own lives. We get so focused on what is hard or inconvenient that we forget to look at what is good about the situation. If you focus on the bad, you’re going to find it. But if you stop and look for the good, I think you’ll find that too. That sunset reminded me to refocus. To slow down. To be grateful. To notice the little blessings that are easy to overlook. And maybe sometimes all it takes is pulling the car over, getting out and looking up.  So today, I’m going to try to focus a little less on what’s going wrong and a little more on what’s going right.