What an incredible companion is the sun!  It begins my morning in an aptly named ‘sun room’—perfect in the winter months to bring the morning’s first light.  Without fanfare or hoopla, it moves slowly, due south, illuminating the brightest hours of the late morning and midday.  Softly, slowly, the sun slips into the western sky—early in the winter months, later in the summer.  Today it sinks into the west, splashing colors across the sky like an artist’s palette.  And then into the gulf it splashes, a ball of fire so bright not even the gulf’s waters can dull its blaze.  Even more amazing, the sun performs this daily task with no action required of me or of any human, and yet all life on the planet is possible only because of the sun’s quiet orbit.  Like you, dear God, the sun sustains all life, providing the warmth and the energy that we require.  Thank you for this gift of warmth and of life—like all life, we live in the glow of your love and your presence. Amen.