I love to look at stars. But this is very difficult in metropolitan skies where there is almost always a faint glow from the city lights.
Stars can be seen in the suburbs, but usually only the brightest ones.
But go out into the country and on a cloudless night, and you will see that the skies are ablaze with starlight. It is ridiculously beautiful.
For the past couple of days, I have been Up North far from the nocturnal glow of city lights. This evening I gazed upward in wonder as the sun’s afterglow dimmed and bit by bit, stars burst into sight. I leaned back in my deck chair and lost myself to the awe and wonder of the night sky.
I observed a sea of twinkling stars, the glowing band of the Milky Way, a couple of satellites and a shooting star.
I am not in to constellation identification. I can only positively identify the Big Dipper. I know that the 2 end stars of that formation point directly to Polaris, the North Star. This is the star that has faithfully guided night travelers for centuries untold. I have never felt compelled to know any more than that.
I gladly leave the science and the lore to others. For me, it is enough to give myself to the peacefulness of the stars.
I invite you to join me. At least for a while, leave the city with its bright and hectic lights. Sit outside and gaze upward into the night sky. Observe the majestic gift of our natural world. Breathe in the wonder of the starlight which has travelled thousands of light years in order to delight you. And my wish for you is that you also will experience in that moment both contentment and peace.
Peacefulness – the true gift of the night skies.
(Thanks to NASA for lovely photo)
