One of the fun things about living up north near the border with Canada is how dramatic the shift is from winter to summer. Our summer days longer and our summer nights shorter than places farther south. Conversely, our winter days are shorter and our winter nights are longer than other places where we have lived. This means that in the springtime and fall, the change is rapid. Right now we gain 5 minutes of additional daylight each day. It is easy to detect the change simply by observing how early the sun rises and how late it sets each day.

I almost wrote that each day we get 5 additional minutes of sunshine, but that wouldn’t be accurate. Our days have been fairly cloudy recently. I’ve even adopted that practice, common among my friends around here, of commenting on the clear blue sky when the sky is mostly cloudy with just a few patches of blue sky. Our recent trip to Montana reminded me of the difference. While driving through Montana we observed the snow capped mountains against the clear blue skies. Having returned home we can still see snow capped mountains most days, but their background is rarely a clear blue sky. The difference in contrast is dramatic.

Each day reminds us that we live in a different part of the world than once was the case.

I am especially aware of the difference at this time of the year. The last half of the month of April is a good time to look for meteors. I enjoy seeing “shooting stars.” The Lyrid meteor shower has been observed for nearly 2,700 years, making them one of the oldest known events of the type. This shower appears every year. It is easiest to see the meteors after the moon sets. The moon is setting fairly early right now in our part of the world, a little after 9 pm, so one doesn’t have to stay up late or rise in the middle of the night to get a glimpse at a few meteors. All you have to do is to go outside and sit in the dark for a while to allow your eyes to adjust and look up. At the peak of the shower, there are between 10 and 20 meteors per hour.

However, there are plenty of nights when the sky is obscured by clouds and there are plenty of nights like last evening when the sky had some patches of clear sky and other areas that were obscured by clouds. Even viewing the most common constellations like the two dippers which are usually easy to spot from our back deck, can be a problem when there are clouds. We live just south of the big city of Vancouver, British Columbia. When it is cloudy, the clouds reflect the lights of the city and it just doesn’t get as dark around her as when there are no clouds in the sky.

Another difference for star gazing at our new home is that we have a much smaller yard. The houses are much closer together in this neighborhood than they were where we lived in South Dakota. This means more lights from the neighbors who don’t seem inclined to turn off all of their lights and go to bed as early as I do. That means that our back yard simply is not as dark as was the case in the place we used to live.

I’m adjusting. I’ve learned to celebrate when I see just one or two meteors. I’m learning to talk about hours of daylight instead of hours of sunlight, though I suppose technically the shift in semantics is not very meaningful. I also have learned that a few sprinkles of rain, or a light mist hardly warrant getting out my raincoat. If it isn’t soaking through my regular jacket, my hat, or my gloves, it isn’t worth wearing special clothing. I do, however, make sure that all shoes I buy are waterproof. And I have a good rain jacket and a pair of rain pants just in case. I’m not about to let the weather keep me indoors all day. Walking in the rain is not nearly as challenging as walking in a driving blizzard.

Religious leaders like to talk about mindfulness. The practice of mindfulness can be as challenging as developing a new prayer routine. It also can be as simple as just paying attention to what you are doing and what is going on in the world around you. I try to be mindful when I am making time for prayer. I give myself a few moments to breath deeply and intentionally and focus my thoughts before beginning my prayer routine. But I also try to be mindful about other things as well. During Lent this year, I tried to be especially mindful of my eating, paying attention to each bite and savoring taste, smell, appearance, sight, and sound. I tried to eat less and to spend more time on each bite. I hope it is a practice that I will be able to continue as a new habit and a permanent change in my lifestyle. There are a lot of other ways to practice mindfulness in daily living. I try to be aware of my surroundings and to pay attention to the natural world. We walk outdoors ever day. I try to be aware of the world and take it all in as we walk. This time of the year it is easy to pause at the doorway and listen to the birds, to take time to smell the blossoms on the cherry tree, to feel the mist in the air or the warmth of the sunshine. The natural world presents a rich tapestry of sensations when we take time to pay attention.

So I’ll be watching for Meteors when it is dark and for sunshine when it is light. And I’ll be grateful for the lengthening of days and the peace of the night sky. Along the way, I’ll take delight in each surprise and there are plenty of those.