Sanibel Island: I've Looked at Clouds from Both Sides Now

Those of us of a certain age, remember well the sweet lyrics of Joni Mitchell's popular song, Both Sides Now.

And all of us at any age probably think we know clouds even though Mitchell's words deny that is possible.

But any one interested in beautiful , unique and ever changing cloud formations must come and visit Sanibel Island.

On any given day, the skies are inspiring.

Our clouds can be white and fluffy hovering over the island like bleached cotton candy ready to be plucked from the sky, a perfect background to our tropical vegetation.

They can be spread out, low in the sky, and ever transforming in color.  Our sunsets are punctuated by these low lying, dream like images which can be pink, purple, orange or a combination of all at dusk.  They are all special.

Lying on the beach is always enhanced with cloud watching.  We watch to make sure the clouds do not bunch up too closely and threaten storms.  We watch to see how our many birds fly past them becoming part of the canvas.  We watch to avoid looking at our own watches as the clouds help to tell the time. 

There is beauty throughout the world.

And while we regret that our islands do not offer hills and mountains, we do offer some of the most amazing clouds to be seen anywhere.  They keep our gaze entertained and our hopes up.

Now we challenge you in your next cloud observation on our tropical island to think of what you are seeing ......and not to have this refrain echoing in your mind:

 Rows and flows of angel hair
And ice cream castles in the air
And feather canyons everywhere
I've looked at clouds that way