I learned something new yesterday while we walked on the beach. The grey skies and cold windy weather had returned, but we decided to risk a walk on the beach and were rewarded when the rain held off until we had finished and were back home. But it was a drab, dreary day at the beach. The ocean looked a grey, colorless mass broken only by the constant whitecaps and breaking surf. The sand seemed a dingy brown. And the grey sky.
I mentioned to Alma how depressing the land- and seascape looked by contrast with Tuesday when the skies were sunny and the ocean appeared a pristine blue.
"Water is a perfect reflector," Alma said. "So the reason the water appears grey today is that it is reflecting the grey of the clouds above."
"Ah," I replied. "And so the reason the water appeared bright blue yesterday . . . "
Alma finished my thought. "Yeah, it was reflecting the blue skies we had yesterday."
It's funny how perception influences mood. There's almost a symbiotic relationship between the two. Yesterday, seeing the grey water definitely brought my mood down. While I was glad not to have to walk at the soul-sucking mall yet again, the ubiquitous greyness did nothing to lift my spirits.
Today skies are again grey and, as I write, it appears as if it could begin raining again at any moment. Alma and I have basically decided not to risk a beach walk today and go, instead, to the mall. Sigh. So we will see if the converse of what I wrote is true. I'll be going to the mall in a less-than-positive mood. I wonder whether my mood will influence my perceptions.
Stay tuned.
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