The Long Record

I stepped outside early that morning to walk to the bus. I’ve done that walk more times than I can count.

But that sky…it took my breath away.

And somewhere between the building and the end of the parking lot, I stopped.

The sky wasn’t just color—it felt alive, like it had something left to say before the day took over. Deep reds fading into something softer, but not gone yet. And those trees… bare and reaching, like they had been standing there long before me and would be there long after.

Nothing about them had changed. They were just being what they were.

But from where I stood, it all felt different.

From where I stood, nothing had changed… and yet everything had.