If nothing else, one thing I have come to marvel at in Darwen are the spectacular sun sets usually in the changing from winter to spring and back again behind Sunnyhurst.

As I peer out across the town, there is a lovely, but brief as the light fades, layer of horizontal banded hues moving through the spectrum from a pink to an orange as the sun light fades below the horizon towards the east. Taping off in a coda towards dusk, the evening falls.

Sometimes, when conditions are just right with no wind, movement a lovely blue glazed effect can be seen lazily above the town like a pane of smoked glass producing an amazing, but tranquil effect. Tinted blue/gray, combined smoke and steam creates this imagery as the light reflects at just the right inclination. Colors shifting gradually with the setting sun. Vibrant, so alive. Potential. Easy to see how in olden times farmers used this to forecast the next day's weather.

Vanishing behind Sunnyhurst, a final burst of color before it vanishes as if was never there. Fades like a passing thought or forgotten memory. Something I imagine would greatly inspire a painter to canvass. And, oh, the possibilities are infinite. To inspire, to promote the imagination. To bring alive a wonderful drawing, painting or photograph.

And another thing about Darwen which has inspired me. Just a simple act of nature, but one which has captivated me since I first arrived here. Just the beauty of it has captured my attention so many times. Indeed, surprised me in some ways. Certainly, a photographer's dream picture and potential competition prizewinner. Very often the most captivating imagery is the simplest, untouched by visual effects or alterations.

During the spring, early summer this colorful canvass lasts into the early evening. No wind, no movement. Just hangs there above the buildings, sometimes just the color you can see and for an insightful, wishful moment ... you can easily believe there are no buildings, roads beneath but transported somewhere else entirely.

If there are any photographers out there or painters I would certainly advise they find a decent vantage point above the town ... To capture and immortalize this simple, but colorful tapestry.

Never have I been captivated by nature as much since coming here. It has awoken something within me. A passion. An urge to write about it. Something so simple, yet so profound. It just so cries out to be heard, to be listened to. The sound of nature. Hope.

We tend not to notice such things but when we do they can often capture our hearts and souls. Just one more thing Darwen has to offer the casual visitor.