The Dancing Sun Rays Of Twilight
Sun Rays: Every morning and every evening on planet Earth, when the sky is free from obscuring clouds and the view of the horizon is not blocked by mountains, hills, trees or buildings, nature's solar light show can be seen and enjoyed. This is morning or evening twilight. The sphere of the sun is no longer visible, but the sun's rays seem to dance for your pleasure.
The color of the sun's rays changes dramatically and rapidly from yellow, to orange, to red and even to pink as the light of the sun moves through particles in the Earth's atmosphere. Although the phenomenon is evolving rapidly, we see it in three different phases. These phases are known as civil twilight, nautical twilight and astronomical twilight. However, astronauts in orbit around the earth have a different image. They can see a shadow line of darkness, the point of transition from some natural light to total darkness, then a line of red, white, and blue before the border of darkness of deep space begins. I suppose this is inspiring for American, British, French and Russian astronauts, because these are the colors in their national flags.
When the sun is six degrees or less below the horizon, civil twilight occurs. In villages and towns, the light spectrum drops to the point that street light sensors switch on the lights. At six to twelve degrees below the horizon, the sun is far enough hidden from the human eye that there is not enough light to observe the line between earth and heaven. This is nautical twilight. As the sun passes twelve to eighteen degrees below the horizon, the glow leaves the sky. This is astronomical twilight. Total natural darkness begins. Now, without artificial light (especially from streetlights of towns and villages), and if there are no clouds, we can clearly see the stars, the moon and some planets.
Twilight has been given a different meaning, a meaning that is independent of the position of the sun. Have you heard someone say that they are in the twilight of their career or their life? They describe a period of gradual decline, a time when they ask if they matter and their work becomes unclear. They and others see ambiguity in their relevance for the company and later for life itself. In both cases this sounds loud, but it is life. Life is all about reproduction. In our older years we use resources and add less value to young life. But be careful.
If you plan and use it, you can withdraw from the fast pace of a professional life to live at your leisure. I am there now, in the afternoon of my life. It was like stepping out of a passenger train and saying goodbye to those who stay on the train of life, and then I may greet others as they step off their trains to retire. I expect astronomical twilight to start something big instead of indicating the end of my life. That will be when I see the glorious rays of heaven as Jesus the son of God rises.
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