Laos Cycle: A Skyline

About 4 years ago now, I decided to be conscious about noticing the beauty around me as I live.

There’s a butterfly.

Look at the contrast of those yellow flowers against the blue sky.

See the lines of the roof tops?

I’ve always been an observant person, but a period of my life became a blur of busyness, and I forgot to look up, to stop sometimes and take a breath. Kids do this beautifully — they notice — and somewhere along the line as an adult, I released I had to learn to love the moment once again. Perhaps it began when I became a mother, and I was reminded.

I now find myself effortlessly enjoying all the little good, good things every single day.  And I especially like looking up, because against the backdrop of the sky, things are clear and strong.  When I’m in an unfamiliar country or place, it’s how I get a feel for its personality.

Laos: There’s something quietly dramatic about this place: it’s effortlessly majestic; unassuming yet impressive; there’s an undercurrent of quiet confidence.  The unique and almost conflicting combination is stunning and as I cycled through the country, I found myself pausing in wonder, transfixed by all the beauty around me.  Lush green hills, jagged cliffs, misty clouds that kiss the mountain tops in the mornings.  Quiet people and ornate buildings; brown rivers: steady, slow and strong; spots of colour in the trees tops.  Laos is like that person you know, that is stunning — but they don’t know it; unaffected and truly, truly beautiful.

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