Being Whimsical & Childlike with Clouds


Have you ever looked up and been awestruck, overcome by the beauty of white, puffy or whimsical clouds in the sky?

I was recently in Arizona, and I looked up overhead and was awestruck by the array of white, whimsical, beautiful clouds flowing against a perfectly blue sky.

All throughout the weekend I found myself looking up at the sky and noticing their transformation throughout the day, the way the sunlight shines opaque, the hues of pinks and oranges through the sunset, and turning silver lit by the full moon.

As I admired the shapes and textures of the clouds, it occurred to me that I often look up at the sky to feel a sense of awe and inspiration, calmness and peace, but could not remember the last time I looked up at the sky in a playful way.

By playful I mean that childlike excitement of looking up and noticing as the clouds transform into a bird, a turtle, a horse, allowing your imagination run wild.

Our minds are often thinking about so much that we often forget to notice what is happening in our natural world, to look up at the sky.

Space that was initially carved out for time to look around and take a deep breath is often taken up by the digital cloud.  Often when we  stop to cross the street we have our phones in our hands, texting and looking down.  In doing this we miss the beauty around us.

Cloud Meditation

I love this TED talk by Cloud Appreciation Society founder Gavin Pretor-Pinney, he gave an inspiring talk reminding us about slowing down to appreciate the clouds as a way of finding a greater sense of peace and balance in our lives.