Highfeweizen: Civil Twilight Above the Rooftops
Let us tell you a secret…
But you have to promise to tell everyone you know.
There is something extraordinary about the Earth and you might not know it unless you have traveled to other planetary systems or if you have never been to Earth. The extraordinary thing is this…well…it’s something like a braid, weaving together an essential three components: time, light, and life.
If you are reading this as a current Earth-dweller it will be easy for you to experience this braid. Maybe you have already felt it before. The braid makes its most subtle yet spectacular performance in the moments that just follow the setting of the sun. These are the moments called “twilight”, when the Earth’s upper atmosphere scatters and reflects sunlight which illuminates the lower atmosphere. What results is a glowing horizon which does not yet know that the light source has left.
There are a lucky few humans who, in those minutes of twilight, can find momentary bliss above the sound and bustle and heat of the day. Those lucky ones perch atop a hill, a rooftop, a balcony, a tree, anything above the ground really, and look out onto the world from their elevated vantage. What they see is a fading luminance which is not yet dark but no longer vibrant. A cushion, created by the Earth’s atmosphere, allowing for just a bit of time for life to settle into this new dark phase of the day. From that little bit of height you can watch and feel the settling take place. Streetlights and living room lights are not yet on. Maybe one star has made an appearance. There is a soft shuffling and a bit of adjusting at the street level. A quiet sigh. Even away from the evidence of humans, a stillness, a peace, a reflective pause takes place.
On Earth, the timing of celestial rotation happens in such a way that just as smoothly as twilight sets in, so does it slip into dark. Bound between those hands of time, you find light reflecting, and life settling. The next time you visit Earth, find an elevated perch and wait for twilight.
* A note from Travis and Jess: Our particularly favorite phase of twilight is called “civil twilight”. This is when the sun is less than 6 degrees below the horizon. Depending on where you find yourself, twilight can take on so many different forms. If you find yourself out in the ocean, surfing, or paddling, you’ll see the water turn to a silver mercury as seals and other creatures pop up one last time to see the light. If you find yourself in the forest, you’ll feel a light breeze and notice a distinct stillness. If you find yourself on a rooftop, you’ll notice that one of the most enjoyable ways to observe civil twilight is with a light wheat beer in hand, peaceful tunes in the background, and a calming sense that you are cushioned by the Earth.