A Singular Meeting

Few times in life is the taking a picture of a sunset acceptable, very few times. So few that the only acceptable case where such a shot is allowed is if God Himself commands you to do so. I chuckle when I see photos of sunsets. So, for all of you who have chuckled at this image already, take it back. The Creator of the Universe commanded me to capture this particular image.

As I returned from a hike in the Angeles Crest Mountains, my eyes were intensely focused on the the lay of the trail before me, so as to save my weak ankles from an accidental roll. Night was coming quickly and I was trying to reach the end of the trail and my bicycle so I could get home before complete darkness came. The temperature was dropping a bit but still warm enough to be comfortable. The peace was needed after a stressful week at school and the silence was truly profound. I was content in my solitude, with little on my mind. Suddenly, as I rounded a bend in the trail carved into the side of the mountain, I saw Him. He smiled as He saw me, as if He was patiently waiting for my arrival. He motioned to my backpack and I knew He was about to do something worthy of remembrance. I, without taking my eyes off Him, reached into my backpack and pulled out my digital Nikon D70 and tripod. As I set up my equipment, He pulled out His own choice tools and laid them out before me. We seemed to face off with our mediums, like two soldiers in battle preparing to meet. I had my tripod locked off, facing my subject, ready to capture it. Like two runners on the starting line, we waited for the gun, tense, ready, and prepared for the following second.

He, like a western gunslinger in a draw, took up his brush and paints in a flash of orange and red. I responded to His move and dropped my anxious eye to the viewfinder. In a flurry of strokes and splashes, He arced His way across the sky and filled it with His glory and passion. I perspired, with my finger on that little silver button, waiting in tense anticipation for my moment to come. In a dramatic sweep of His arm He presented His work; a painting so great and so majestic the entire sky could hardly contain it. In this instant I checked my exposure, set my focus, and, with a final push of my finger, heard the sound of my shutter open and close, each pixel taking on more color and weight than it had ever done before. In the very next second, a thick darkness reclaimed the sky and erased the work. However, and to the disappointment of said darkness, I stood there triumphant, holding in my camera a masterpiece that the darkness would be unable to erase. I waltzed down the mountain trail, no longer worried about the darkness; I carefully carried an expanse of marvelous light in my hand.