March 22, 2008
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I wonder, is there someone out there who can look up at the stars and not feel overcome with wonder and awe? All day long we bury our minds in the present matters of our lives, but then we are stopped cold amidst our schedules and thoughts to see how awesome the universe is we live in. My mind always stops and freezes to think, ‘I can’t believe I’m in the universe.’ What power and majesty, what breadth and beauty. I can look at my hand right in front of my face, and then turn and see a star an unfathomable distance away; how curious is this dichotomy of my vision’s options.
Is it not overwhelming to look up at the stars? When I do, I feel the weight and depth of being a human wash over me. I am reminded of how singular and momentary life is. I imagine all the other humans throughout all of history looking to the stars and thinking about the meaning of life and their curious presence in the universe. But the nature of reactions can vary. The universe may look cold and dark, or it may look beautiful and amazing. One can be angry that they have been put here and forced to live a life, or one may be humbled and grateful to be able to take part in the earth’s story.
But no words can sum it up for me. Looking at the stars makes me feel like words never could. How humbling they are!
Le silence éternel de ces espaces infinis m’effraie.
Comments (5)
We don’t see many stars around here. We live in a large city. Light pollution overwhelms most of them. The first time I really saw the stars was when I visited my grandparents in rural western Kentucky. I had had no idea there were so many, or that they were so bright.
I love the stars. For all those reasons and more.
During the recent solar eclipse, I stood in our church parking lot with a pair of binoculars and a star chart. People passed by uninterested, and preoccupied. But all the children stopped to ask me what was happening. As I explained, they drew in their parents to listen to a lesson about the majesty of the universe. They acted like they had never seen it before.
It’s like when Joshua Bell stood in the subway, playing the most complex and beautiful music ever written for a violin, playing a Strativarius and only the children even noticed. It says something about humanity.
Can you imagine when God told Abraham to look at the stars in the sky and know that his seed would outnumber the stars!! He must have been in awe.
Good post and hope you had a wonderful Easter.
even the heavens declare the Glory of The Lord