Twilight Teachings
April 9, 2025
Writer: Caroline Park
Editors: Natalie Lebovitz & Dani Eder
Photo: Pinterest
Each evening, the sky paints itself with hues of orange, pink, and lavender as the sun slips below the horizon. It's a fleeting moment, one that lasts just a few minutes, but it always feels like something larger than life itself. Watching the sunset has become a practice of stillness and reflection, a reminder that beauty often lies in the impermanence of things.
Each sunset is unique; no two are ever the same, even if they share the same basic elements. The clouds, the light, the shadows, they all blend together to form a masterpiece that can never be duplicated. It’s in that brief moment, between day and night, that I am reminded of how much life mirrors the sunset itself: beautiful, brief, and ever-changing.
Growing up, I never gave much thought to the way the sun sets. It was just another part of the day, another predictable occurrence that I took for granted. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to appreciate it as more than just a natural phenomenon. Sunsets are a metaphor for life, a powerful reminder to live in the present moment. Each one is fleeting, and yet there’s a special kind of magic in that impermanence. The idea that something so beautiful can only exist for a short while makes it even more precious.
Just as each sunset is unique, so are the moments that make up our lives. No two experiences, no two connections, no two encounters are ever identical. Like the ever-changing colors of the sky, life is constantly changing. At the end of the day, these moments come together to create the mosaic of our existence, each one contributing something special and irreplaceable. Whether it’s the laughter shared with a friend, the quiet comfort of a loved one’s presence, or a short romantic relationship leaving two lovers craving more, these moments paint the shifting shades of a sunset–each one adding depth and beauty to our story.
Sunsets have taught me that there’s an art to appreciating the present. We often get caught up in the idea of what’s next, always looking ahead to the future, when the true beauty lies in the here and now. A sunset never apologizes for its impermanence; it simply exists in its moment, offering its full brilliance before fading into a cloudy memory. Bliss and beauty, by their nature, are never meant to last forever. How else would we recognize them as special? If we only had dessert, how could we fully appreciate its sweetness? We, too, must learn to embrace the fleeting nature of life, understanding that sometimes the beauty comes from appreciating the moment and letting go with a bittersweet heart.
I often find myself sitting on the slope, watching the sunset alone. But I never feel lonely. The sky is streaked with gold and deep purple, and as I sit there, I can’t help but notice the people around me. Some are gathered in groups, laughing and talking. Others, like me, sit alone in quiet reflection. Despite the diversity of experiences that had led each of us there–different backgrounds, different stories, different days–we are all united by this shared moment, this brief slice of time where the sun slowly dips beneath the horizon. It strikes me how vast and varied our lives were, yet here we are, brought together by something as simple and transient as the setting sun. The complexities of our individual lives faded in the face of such universal beauty. For a moment, we are all part of something larger than ourselves.
Life is full of beautiful, fleeting moments. Some long-lasting, some short-lived, but all worth savoring. Like the sunset, we are meant to experience life in its full, vibrant, ever-changing glory. At the end of the day, when glistening stars begin to populate the cool midnight sky, we can smile, warmed by the knowledge that the beauty we experienced was real–even if it was never meant to last forever.
