Why is the sky blue?

Everyday I walk four times to our neighborhood school: early in the morning to drop off my son, later in the morning to drop off my kindergartener, early in the afternoon to pick up the kindergartener, and later in the afternoon to pick up my son. Lucky for me we live in Southern California.

I don't mind the frequent treks. The walks are a nice break in my otherwise agoraphobic existence. Nothing wakes up the body and mind like the chilly morning air and a quick chat with beloved neighbors. And nothing warms my kids and me up like a walk in the afternoon sun, a game of tag with friends, and a good-bye until tomorrow chat with beloved neighbors.

What I love most about our little walks is the view.
(This is not our house, but I wish it was. Ours is much smaller and has a lot more weeds & toys in the yard as well as an abandoned car in the driveway.)

The blue is not just in front of me, it's all around me. It's impossible to miss. And be awed.

I can't help but think about how the longer wavelengths of color like red are absorbed by air particles, leaving only the shorter wavelengths to be scattered and reflected. Hence, blue sky.

I'm grateful these days for any coherent thought, nerdy and out of touch though it may be.

Then, because I have nothing else to do except sit around and ruminate, I wonder: Why are the long wavelengths absorbed, leaving only the shorter ones? Why is blue a shorter wavelength and red a longer one? Why is the sky not red or some other color?

God made it so, and not just randomly. Every bullfighter and decorator knows that color affects mood. Red, for example is associated with power, anger, desire, violence, and can actually raise blood pressure. I'd hate to be surrounded every day by red.

Blue represents peace, tranquility, stability, harmony, unity, trust, and truth. Blue can slow the pulse rate and lower body temperature. Out of all the other positive moods evoked by other colors, God chose peace and harmony to envelope us with. Not only in sky but in water as well. That's a big chunk of the world!

God knows us so well. He knows we're ornery people who fight about the dumbest things, from whether a car cut us off to who gets the biggest dessert portion. He knows we need a reminder, wherever we are in the world we are, from sun up to sun down, to live in peace with each other.

Plus, blue just goes so well with the rest of the earth: white clouds, green trees, brown earth, and bright flowers. I have personally conducted some research attesting to how blue jeans go with everything.

This concludes our science lesson. Next time, I will address the age old question of is Pluto a planet? Oh, let's get real. I'm not going to have anytime soon to blog again. So...

Pluto is a dwarf planet which is not a planet at all. Certain astronomers were unwilling to let go of Pluto as a planet and so stuck the term planet in the new category, thereby proving to everyone that scientists enjoy confusing people with nomenclature. The real answer is, of course, who the heck can tell from 5 billion kilometers away?