2022… Back when the world felt like it was only half on fire, gas prices made you cry, and yet somehow, sunsets like these still managed to remind us there was something bigger out there. A higher purpose. A reason to look at life and say, “Alright, universe, I see you. I get it. I’ll stop doomscrolling for five minutes.”

I remember this day like it was yesterday. The air was crisp, the sky painted with the kind of colors that make Instagram filters weep with inadequacy, and there I was, armed with a camera and the hope that I’d capture something halfway as epic as the real thing. Spoiler alert: I crushed it. Look at that golden reflection on the water, nature’s mic drop.

That first photo? That’s the human condition summed up right there. Me, or some random guy, trying to capture the moment before it slips away. And failing, because let’s be honest, the photo never quite does it justice. But you try anyway. Why? Because moments like this remind you that life isn’t about the perfect shot. It’s about the effort. The showing up. The standing in freezing temps because your soul craves beauty more than it fears frostbite.

Fast forward to today, and here I sit, staring out the window as “winterse buien” (translation for my non-Dutch-speaking friends: icy hell that falls from the sky like it has personal beef with you) beat against the glass. Tomorrow might be more of the same, but here’s the good news: the weekend forecast is stone cold and sunny. That’s right. The kind of weather where the cold slaps you awake but the sunlight makes it worth it.

And you better believe I’ll be out there, camera in hand, chasing moments like these all over again. Until then, I’ll mentally prep with these memories from 2022. They remind me to stop whining about the weather and just go, even if it’s miserable out. Because life is a series of snapshots, some more epic than others. But every single one of them counts.

So, if you’re sitting there waiting for the “perfect” moment, stop. Nature doesn’t wait. Your dreams don’t wait. And the sun will rise and set, with or without you. Just saying.

Now go, bundle up, and make some magic this weekend. Your future self will thank you.