"Now comes sundown. The west is all a glory of color transfiguring everything. Far up the Pilot Peak Ridge the radiant host of trees stand hushed and thoughtful, receiving the Sun's good night, as solemn and impressive a leave-taking as if sun and trees were to meet no more. The daylight fades, the color spell is broken, and the forest breathes free in the night breeze beneath the stars." Pg 183 When I first read these lines it reminds me of how beautiful sunsets are. Sunsets are something that is bigger than humans and hold a reminder to how small we are in this world. The language Muir uses in describing this sunset is phenomenal. He calls the trees radiant as in shining with light(sun). I can imagine the sun light being bright in between the rows of trees. Sitting and watching a sunset can be peaceful for many of us and how he personifies the trees as being hushed by the sunset's beauty. He also calls them thoughtful as if they are letting the sun have it's moment of beauty. Even the trees see the beauty in the sun and hold their breath until it disappears and is taken over by a night breeze. I found this small paragraph to be full of imagery and I can just relate to how much beauty is in small things we take for granted such as sunsets.
