Day 4,051
Growing up in northern Wisconsin, there were many things I took for granted. One of the largest (literally) was the starry skies, almost completely exposed by the utter lack of light pollution. Mom had often taken us outside to look up at the stars on cool summer nights, watching for the possible shooting stars while taking in the enormity of the heavens above. I figured everyone had a spectacular view of the Milky Way, thus I concluded it was rather ordinary. For sure, I was in awe of the stars and all the cosmos, but I completely missed how wrong I was about what everyone else was seeing.
My freshman year of college was when the curtains were opened for me. During a break I brought a friend back home to experience rural Wisconsin, she had grown up in the Detroit metro. One night we went out on Little Chicago Rd and laid out on the blacktop, staring up at the starry sky. The sheer awe and wonder she experienced and that I experienced through her still makes me smile! She had never seen the skies that clearly in such total dark, it was her first time seeing the Milky Way. We laid there seemingly for hours with my buddies, all of us watching for satellites and shooting stars, talking about everything and nothing all at once. It was one of those moments I’ll remember forever, everything in the world was exactly in tune and where it was meant to be for a moment.
Fast forward a little over thirty years and I’m taking Leia outside at Becky’s parents’ home in northern Wisconsin. I look up and soak in the splendor of the starry sky. After savoring the galaxy and taking some pictures, I head back in and share with Becky. She immediately lights up, excitement bursting from her smile, and we bolt back outside like a couple of little kids!
We walked into the darkness, eyes always looking up. We talked, we stood in shared wonder, and enjoyed the view and the quiet moment together. Total stillness and solitude, surrounded only by the stars, a moment of awe filled perfection.
Staring into the starry sky I feel I could slip from the gravity of Earth and fall into the infinity of space. When in Canada I was excited to see over 60 miles of land and lake, here my mind breaks on the concept of seeing billions of light years at once. So much beauty, such a state of awe and presence.
Thanks!!!
