Dear LPG,  


Now that I am retired, I have to admit that I’ve discovered my lazy bone. I don’t get up as early as I could, and I’ve found that a little “lateral contemplation” is my way of putting the time between waking up and actually getting up to good use. What I mean is that I seem to do quite a bit of first‑thing‑in‑the‑morning lateral thinking. Others might call it early‑morning daydreaming, but during this daily ritual my mind sometimes comes up with surprisingly profound observations. 


The other morning, that big orange sight in the sky was directly responsible for the first turn of my mental cogs. 


After taking a good look at its orange aura as it rose behind my net curtains, set against a perfectly blue sky, my mind began to get into gear for the day ahead. 


Once we older folk return to the reality of what day it is and what we have planned, I think we also remember that the sense of urgency we once had about getting going has given way to a slower, gentler approach to the new day… but back to the morning in question. 


Despite the warm, summery feel of that day, my thoughts drifted to the fact that now I am well and truly retired, I spend the winters avoiding the great outdoors and simply waiting for the sun to grace us with its presence again. After all, once you’ve received that golden handshake, there is very little compulsion—or incentive—to brave the elements or subject yourself to anything as unpleasant as a British winter. 


But for all that, they do say there is something very special about sunlight and the effect it has on every life it touches. By now we have all heard about the impact of SAD syndrome, and many of us miss that big yellow round thing in the sky once winter returns each year. Even in the deepest depths of winter, it’s worth remembering that when we can’t see it, our nearest star is still doing its job up there. Often it hides behind the clouds, and it has fewer hours to radiate its positive effects because of the way our world turns. The warmth we appreciate so much in summer is the missing link—and when you add in all the other winter weather variables (rain, snow, frost, hail, ice, and so on), it becomes much harder to appreciate. 


I have a cousin who lives in the West Indies and considers it cold when she needs to put a cardigan over her short sleeves, while another cousin in Canada fully expects October to be a snowy month. 


I often think that here in the UK we are quite fortunate to live in a part of the world where we experience all kinds of weather, but in a relatively tame way. Even though we sometimes think our weather is extreme, anyone who has visited a country that crosses the equator or either of the world’s poles will know that our beloved planet offers far more dramatic versions of its excesses elsewhere. I have to say, just watching cold weather on the television makes me feel shivery these days, and a programme with a desert backdrop has been known to make me take my jacket or coat off despite the real temperature. But back to our sun—it’s the biggest thing any of us earthlings are ever likely to see, not to mention the hottest. 


I don’t know a great deal about the sun, but I remember being taught at school that it is the biggest and hottest thing most of us are ever likely to see. We wouldn’t survive a trip anywhere near it, and it’s one of those natural wonders we should never look at directly for fear of damaging our eyes. But we don’t really need to see it clearly—just knowing it’s there is comforting, isn’t it. 


When I finally get going in the mornings, my earlier bout of lateral thinking often prompts me to look up what the internet has to say on such a subject, and there is usually something profound to add. A little bit of Googling can put everything into perspective. 


I suppose we’ve always known this, but when you look at our sun as just one part of the universe, it isn’t quite as enormous as we once imagined. Still, I hope it will always be big enough for us… 


TL, Beckenham  

 

 

 

TL shares what Google taught him on the subject…

 

 

 

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