Look up!
Why we’re celebrating Sky Awareness Week this year
A beautiful bank of clouds on the horizon beyond Smuggler’s Cove.
“Huh?” You might be asking. “What in the world is Sky Awareness Week?” Not too long ago, we would have been asking the same question. Near the end of March though, we were participating in one of those now ubiquitous Zoom chat sessions with friends we’re not allowed to see in person, and someone brought up the National Day Calendar. We thought, “That sounds interesting! I wonder what kind of things could be celebrated on there?” So we of course had to look it up as soon as the last person signed off that virtual hang out… And we found so many interesting days, weeks, and months of celebration!
What a gloriously sunny sky, with just a few puffy clouds floating serenely by.
For instance, did you know that April is the National Month of Hope? It’s also Humor Month, Poetry Month, and Stress Awareness Month, all of which feel like things everyone the whole world over needs to help cope with the current moment. We also love that April is considered the month to celebrate Fresh Celery, Pecans, and Soft Pretzels – how beautifully random and delicious is that? There’s also Public Health Week, Volunteer Week, and Every Kid Healthy Week. Plus, there’s a whole slew of National Days – days that make us smile, days that make us laugh, days that make us grateful to be alive, days that make our tummies rumble, that make us cheer, that fill our imaginations, that make us proud, that fill us with peace, that spark our creativity, reconnect us with the earth, make us dream, and cause us to pause and ponder who we are and the stories our lives will tell.
A dramatic evening sky over Spring Ranch.
As we read through this sometimes admittedly oddball list from the National Day Calendar, we felt our hearts expand with all the wonderful things, moments, and people that it was nudging us to celebrate. It was like a reminder to lift up our heads and refocus on the world around us, to stop agonizing over the challenges that the coronavirus has thrown on our doorstep – it felt like a refreshingly sweet, innocent invitation to look up and breathe.
Double sunrise sky along the Noyo River!!
So that’s exactly what we’ve been doing. We’ve been hitting the pause button. We’ve been choosing to celebrate. If you follow us on Facebook or Instagram, you’ve probably already seen some of our posts about how we’re celebrating this National Day or that. And you’re going to keep seeing those posts, because this whole National Day thing just fills us with too much joy to keep to ourselves!
A fisherman’s morning sky.
One of these celebrations that has particularly captured our nature-loving, Mendocino hearts is the Sky Awareness Week we mentioned at the beginning of this little piece. Officially celebrated the final full week of April every year since 1991, this week is all about observing and appreciating the sky above us, and even the very air we breathe. Of course, we can all enjoy the beauty of a sunset or be grateful for a stretch of clear and sunny blue, but how often do we actually stop and think about the atmosphere that protects and sustains all life on our planet? How often do we simply ponder the intricate wonder of a cloud as it drifts on by or hugs the ground in a blanket of fog?
Encroaching clouds above…
Well, we are going to be doing just that this coming Sky Awareness Week, Sunday, April 19 – Saturday, April 26. We are going to look up, to take our time, and delight. Won’t you join us?
There was deep peace hovering in the wispy fleece of cloud over the sunset’s glow.
Words and photos by Laura Hockett