Some days, it is painful to open my eyes and get out of bed. “Just another hour is all I need,” but there is not always time for that extra hour. It’s New Year’s Day today, so last night bled into today by quite a bit. Though I had very little shut-eye, that did not matter to our new puppy as she wailed for someone to come hang out with her from the front room.

After a few minutes in the fresh powder that had fallen overnight, the pup and I returned into the house with snowflakes in our hair and a chill in our feet. I was awake now, somewhat, yet still did not have the energy to play puppy style this early in the day. In that tired and slightly frustrated moment, I found a unique gift.

The sun had begun to pierce through the slats of our closed window coverings, and as I pulled the cord to open up the view from the front room of our house, the sky was exploding with an array of warm hues from orange to pink. This technicolor sunrise was given a unique boost in beauty as small crystals floated down from the trees onto the already pillowed snow-covered earth below.

I picked up the pup, and we laid down in front of the window to bask in the beauty of the living portrait evolving outside. As she licked my nostrils and gnawed on my sweatshirt, I became grateful for being woken up early rather than begrudging it. Once again, I was surprised by beauty.

That’s how it goes sometimes, isn’t it? We know what we want, but what we need sneaks up on us. I cannot imagine a day where the sunrise will not inspire me or bring me to a place of gratefulness, though I know that those moments may only remain as moments in time. A day like today brings the space and freedom to enjoy the snow and the cold, whether we choose to make snow angels, recklessly slide down a forest hill, or simply take in the view from the warmth of our home; though will not always be the case.

There will be others on this same morning, maybe even on my same street who are waking up into a world where the brief moment of morning beauty is all they have to become energized from as life may require much of them today. This day that represents newness and renewal may actually draw some into a harder chapter of life. In those moments, we hope that the deep beauty that lies within creation and draws our hearts to that beauty provides enough inspiration and courage for all to carry on.

We will all find ourselves in the latter scenario at times, and if so, take heart and lean into the moments of inspiration and into the connections we have to those around us. If today greets you as it does me today, let us recognize that gift with gratefulness and overflow into the lives of those around us, and become a force for good as we write onto the pages of their lives.