A Sunset to Relieve a Biker's Distress

Around 6:30pm I was still biking. An hour before, I had left my dormroom. Carrying my super sweet armyish backpack, I was ready for an adventure down Evans Street to find a sketchbook for my 3D Approaches class and some fruit and vegetables so I wouldn't starve. I biked past the Safeway, seaching for Colorado Street, where I was supposed to find the art supplies store. After pedaling for awhile I got the sinking feeling that I was going the wrong way down Evans. I asked the person in the car nearest to me where Colorado was, they pointed in the direction I had come and informed me that it was, "a long way away." I was a bit disheartened, but as my legs were not yet tired, I did not mind too terribly. I stopped at the Safeway for groceries and met my first trial. Food is expensive. I already knew this, but I didn't realize HOW expensive! I bought a (small) bag of carrots, a bag of assorted apples and oranges, and some grapes. Signing up for a Safeway card brought my total down a bit. I then unlocked my kryptonite bike lock (that sounds cool, doesn't it?) and continued on my journey. After passing DU I began to feel a bit tired. I FINALLY reached my destination, only to find that it had closed an hour and a half before. Frustration and stress hit. I stood in front of the store for a few minutes, collecting my thoughts. I found myself feeling a bit angry, although the store's hours were obviously not anyone specific's fault. Just as I was about to search for a Target, I saw a Office Depot and dropped in. I found my sketchbook and only paid $5 for it, praise the Lord, and began to bike back towards campus. I was still upset, and feeling like life was just so incredibly difficult (obviously, it isn't). I looked up, and saw the sunset. Now you have to realize, I LOVE sunsets. Some of my favorite summer memories are standing at the top of the slide a few minutes before the pool closed, watching the sunset and feeling on top of the world. This sunset was quite beautiful. The sky was still a pale, washed-out blue. The clouds were a dark greyish-purple. Most of the clouds were puffy and slightly resembled scoops of ice-cream, but a few looked as though a painter's brush had swept across the canvas, smearing the clouds across the sky. The bottoms of the clouds were tinged in hughes of salmon pink, orange, and red. It was quite breathtaking. I whispered, "Thanks, God. I guess my life really doesn't suck at all," and tried not to hit any poles while I soaked in the glory of the moment. God always seems to do that for me. When I begin to despair, sinking into hopelessness and selfishness and focus on myself, He reminds me that I'm a pretty small part of the big picture, and my struggles are not especially consequential in the grand scheme of things. He daily reminds me to focus on others, their joys and sorrows, and not myself. I love sunsets. I love seeing the world and being reminded of the wonders of it, despite the many evils this world possesses. I love being reminded of the glory of God, the power of God, the strength and majesty of God, and the indescribable beauty of God. Watch the sunsets, they're breathtakingly inspirational and always beautiful.