First LightEach year on December the 21st, I make an early morning pilgrimage to Red Rocks just outside of Denver, Colorado.
I arrive in the early hours, shrouded in darkness and the orange glow of the odd street lamp. As I walk the silent path to the north of the rocks, the glow of the city radiates up into the sky. Then, the sound grows. Drums, pulsating and tribal, echo off the walls. Rounding the corner, the spectacle opens up into widescreen grandeur: hundreds of people on the rocks, gathered together in the predawn light, playing to herald the rebirth of the year. |
From time immemorial, our ancestors have gathered to witness and celebrate this event. Personally, I go to witness humanities connection to the Sun and therefore, our dependence on our natural environment.
It also brings to mind a conversation I once had:
"What's the meaning of it all then? Why are we here?" I asked, eyes squinting into the light of the rising sun.
The man smiled. "Why the Sun? The Sun just is. All of the benefits of the Sun being there come from the Sun simply being what it is. We are because we are."
(Image taken by Michael Amidei on December 21st, 2015)
It also brings to mind a conversation I once had:
"What's the meaning of it all then? Why are we here?" I asked, eyes squinting into the light of the rising sun.
The man smiled. "Why the Sun? The Sun just is. All of the benefits of the Sun being there come from the Sun simply being what it is. We are because we are."
(Image taken by Michael Amidei on December 21st, 2015)
