Which would you rather see, a sunrise or a sunset?
Maybe you’re a morning person and enjoy having coffee outside while watching the sun burst into the sky.
Sunrise
Sunrises promise a new day. A chance to start over, with a clean slate. To do better than before. To make amends where necessary.
They stir anticipation for tackling new projects, meeting new people, uncovering better ways of doing familiar things.
They bring us hope for fresh adventure.
Then again, maybe you’re a night owl and like sunsets better.
Sunset
Sunsets close out a day and afford us time to unwind, rest, and regroup.
To bask in the warmth of family and home.
Those who gravitate toward the excitement of nightlife see sunsets as the start of their adventures.
So which is better — sunrise, or sunset?
There’s no right or wrong answer here.
Each of us, at different times in our lives, relishes one or the other.
Perhaps for different reasons.
Of course you realize all sunrises and sunsets are different — both from each other and from themselves.
Physicists say that has something to do with how light travels. And how our eyes take light in.
I like the exuberance of sunrise. One minute it’s dark; the next, BAM! Sunlight. Or so it seems with the best ones.
A different sunrise
Here, in Central Illinois, morning fog or clouds often hide the sun until it’s high in the sky, so we don’t get to fully appreciate sunrises.
But sunsets often take my breath away with their loveliness. They seem to go on forever. Especially now, when the crops have been harvested.
Sunset, looking east
The sun exchanges its brilliant golden light for muted red tones. Pollutants and other particles in the sky become infused with dusty hues of gold, pink, and lavender, and the sun eases below the horizon, casting shimmery golden shadows on trees facing the show.
Are sunrises or sunsets prettier in your part of the world?
Musings by an ND Domer's Mom 
Both are glorious, but can seldom pull these bones from beneath the warm blankets to watch the sunrise.
HaHa, Wylie must get Dirt Man up, then! Here, Dallas gets me up when it’s still dark out and begs for an early morning potty break. I haven’t slept in in so long, I don’t think I’d remember HOW to do it!
Faaaaaaaaaaaabulously expressed post, Debbie!
“So which is better — sunrise, or sunset?
There’s no right or wrong answer here.”
You’re right, there is no right or wrong answer, it just depends where we’re at in our lives; relishing one or the other.
As you know, I’m more of a night person so I tend to relish in sunsets more so than sunrises. However, I have experienced sunrises that were exquisite.
Some of the most beautiful sunsets I’ve ever witness was when I lived in Florida. Truly magnificent!
Wonderful post, dear lady! SUPER photos too!
X
P.S. We finally got SNOW today! And boy, did we get a lot 🙂
I’m so glad you finally got the snow you wanted, Ron. Does that mean you’re going to post lots of pictures for us??!
I imagine sunsets over water are the best. The next time I get south, I’ll have to see if I can find any to share.
Thanks for dropping by and have a wonderful week!
Sunrise. I am a morning girl. Cole will often text me a picture of the sunrise on the way to school (not while driving :-D) I do love the sunsets over the lake tho.
Snowed all day! It does make everything harder, but in December it is worth it.
Pretty pictures!
Thanks, Kb. I heard you were getting snow. We got about an inch overnight — just enough to be an aggravation.
I hear you about being a morning person. When I was in college, I tended to be a night owl, but as soon as I started working, mornings quickly became my favorite time of day. Lucky you, getting to share the sunrise Cole is seeing!
The answer to every one of your questions is, “It depends.” In the summer, sunsets are the best because they mean an ending to the terrible heat of the day. In winter, sunrises tend to be all pinks and lavenders and blues – beautiful pastels. And in hurricane season, both sunrise and sunset are made dramatics by the mix of incoming clouds.
Which would I rather see? I have to say I love them both, because they belong together – they mark the passage of the days. They’re like peanut butter and jelly. Salt and Pepper. Boys and Girls. You have to have them both!
Ah, what a diplomatic response, Linda — thank you. You are a voice of reason over emotion. You’re right, of course. Sunrises and sunsets are both necessary. Our world would be so much plainer if not for the magnificent colors in our skies!
While mornings are when I get my best work done, it’s sunsets that always draw me in. Perhaps because the colors seem to linger longer. I remember those long dog days of a Texas summer, how it could be ten o’clock at night and still be over 80 degrees. Whew! Even the sidewalks seemed to “smoke”! Needles to say, that part I don’t miss so much, ha!
Aaack! I can’t pick – I love sunrises AND sunsets! I’ve witnessed beautiful sunrises/sunsets in Arizona, but I have to say, they are more beautiful outside of Phoenix. My favorite sunset photo was one I took at a lake with a saguaro cactus in front of it.
I thought of your post when I put this one up, Janna. I really wasn’t trying to play copycat — I’d taken these pictures some time ago and was waiting for just the right time to display them. Isn’t it funny how writers can take a similar subject and come up with different ways of looking at it?! Thanks for dropping by.
I’m an early riser, so I’m much more inclined toward sunrises. I love the quiet of the morning and the promise of what’s ahead for the day.
I, too, am an early riser (thanks, in large part, to a dog who can’t wait to go out!). But mornings are usually so hectic that grabbing the camera isn’t the first thing on my mind. And by the time I think to get it out, the sun has already popped up into the sky — if we see the sun at all (which, sadly, hasn’t been the case lately). Thanks for weighing in, Terri.
Sunsets, hands down. First of all, I can’t get up that early to see the sunrise. Presumably I’d have to be out and about while it’s still dark. And because I’m on the west coast, its the sunset over the ocean that we see and love dearly. Some evenings more spectacular than others. Yep, it’s the sunset that’s for me!
Monica, seeing the sun drop down over the Pacific Ocean is definitely on my Bucket List! I imagine that, without hindrance of trees and such, the sight must be quite spectacular. And, while I’m a morning-type of person, it’s sunsets that always strike me as more beautiful, probably because they’re so peaceful. Thanks for adding to the conversation!
There’s no substitute for a key west sunset. So spectacular people actually cheer it.
I can practically see myself in a lawn chair, sipping something sweet (perhaps with a paper umbrella in it), and clapping as the sun goes down. Now that’s an image that makes me smile — thanks, Oma!
Sunrise….Oh another dag gone day!
Sunset…..Thank you God for getting through this dag gone day!
So I like the sunset because it shows God’s power to get me through another…dag gone day! LOL!
I like your descriptive way of saying it better Deb! Great post!
Thank you, Tanya — you know, you *could* look on the bright side, saying, “Sunrise. Thanks be to God for another dag gone day!” Glad you enjoyed it!
I love sunrises… LOVE them!!!! DIE FOR THEM!
Hope you can find some pretty ones in your part of the world, Jasmine — they do get the day off to a bright start, don’t they?
Yes it is such a beautiful way to start the day!
Sunsets for the professor!
Thanks, Professor. Sunsets are prettier in my part of the world, too! Thanks for taking time to drop by!
Over from Jasmine’s … In general, I think people favor sunsets because they see it from the perspective of what has happened during the day …. (as opposed to what lies ahead).
Hi, Frank, and Welcome! Thanks for letting me know you’re a friend of Jasmine’s, too. I think you’ve got a good point here. Maybe people in general *do* appreciate sunsets for the chance to relive the day’s events; but I’m sure others prefer the mystery of an unknown day, with anticipation that they just might get it right for a change!
Although some my be delighted of the wonder of what lies ahead, I imagine the majority is churning with thoughts of what must be done. Oh well … it’s a good thought.
I haven’t been at Jasmine’s all that long, but thought I’d follow her suggestion to visit others.
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