Have you ever had one of those moments where everything in the world feels right? I’ve always felt that way in Sedona, not always in Chicagoland, with our often unnatural landscapes. As I was driving back from my son’s basketball game this afternoon, I looked up at the sky and felt a different quality coming from the sky like an intense spirit of calm coming over the earth.
Maybe it’s the intense solar flares, or because a clear sunny day in Chicago after many cloudy days feels like heaven. For whatever reason, the quality of the sun today felt different.
Unfortunately, driving and taking any pictures at the same time was a challenge. I captured this one anyway, even though it’s definitely not a great photo, it’s still a reminder of something bigger.
Sometimes words and pictures aren’t able to capture the essence of a moment.
The light this afternoon reminded me of slower, calmer days in the 1960′s when I was a child, and despite all the problems in the world then, there was a certain kind of optimism that’s been lost.
Maybe a new time of optimism is coming back for us in 2012. To feel a Sedona state of mind while driving through the nondescript suburbs of Chicago gives me hope that happy days are here again.
I never thought about the view from the suburbs… During both my eras in Chicago and Evanston I always lived within a half mile (sometimes blocks) of the lake and thus Sheridan Road and Lake Shore Drive with their tantalizing glimpses of the lake and Lincoln Park and the skyline always made it magic for me. I still feel like Tammy Gone to Town every time I come and go on LSD when I visit. Glad you found some of the magic.
The view in the suburbs definitely is different. I lived in Chicago for almost ten years and worked in Evanston during a few of those — I hated moving to the suburbs! After moving out in the suburbs, I worked downtown for five years, but the commute became a killer. Sadly, my children and their Dad do not like the city, so I chose to grouse about living out here in the hinterlands for many years. Only recently, have I decided to change my bias. Still, it was extraordinary to feel some magic driving through my least favorite suburbs.
BTW, I think it’s hilarious and brilliant that you are splitting up your blogs the way that you are. I’m looking forward to meeting your other side in the new blog at notjustsassyontheinside.wordpress.com.
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