Daylight Savings Time starts soon. As the air loses the rich smell of late summer, I find myself becoming a nocturnal creature (mostly out of necessity). As a result, I’m able to experience twilight a lot more often and more clearly than I do during other times of the year. Although the heavy blues and violets sometimes parallel the leaden feeling that winter brings, I appreciate the shrinking days partly because twilight is picturesque, especially in Texas. But more importantly, it also means the sun rises that much later.
As someone who’s chronically late to my 8 AM classes, Daylight Savings Time means I have the opportunity to see the sunrise when I wake up. No longer do I have to set an alarm to see the mottled pinks and oranges. It’s a much more natural process, one that contrasts the hectic nature of the last quarter of the year. The frantic cramming of finals. Precious time with family marred by arguments. The nervousness preceding a new year… Watching the sunrise is an attempt at loosening the tight control we have to maintain for most of the year, but especially now.
But despite my best attempts, I can’t actually see the sunrise from my first-floor, north facing dorm room window. Thankfully, my schedule over the last few years let me step outside relatively early and I discovered some of my favorite places to watch the sunrise on campus. I hope you enjoy them, too.
- The Communications Gardens
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This is one of my favorite places on campus. Last year, I had a few classes in the art buildings, so I would come here before class started. The wooden platform with overhanging tree branches and the trickling fountain create a peaceful environment, one made that much more serene by the sunrise and the crisp morning air.
- The Path from CV1 to Melcher
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Thanks to 8 AM Honors Chem our freshman year, my roommate and I had the privilege of watching many sunrises as we walked (scrambled) to lecture. We walked from CV1 to a building near Melcher. Although this path did not directly face east, we could still see a rosy glow spread across the sky. Having to appreciate the view in the scant ten minutes before class made these sunrises some of my most treasured.
- The Cougar Place Study Rooms
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I only saw these because of my tendency to sleep early and push off work until the morning. Regardless, they were beautiful: the sun colored the bricks pink, a background onto which opposing rooms formed grid-like shadows. These sunrises steeled my resolve to actually finish everything I’d procrastinated on — and most of the time, it actually worked. While I don’t recommend my reason for seeing these sunrises, I do recommend looking out the window next time you’re forced to hole up in one of these study rooms.
Even though Daylight Savings Time may seem like a more depressing time of year, it brings the opportunity to watch more sunrises. Although these sights only last for mere minutes, I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!