Night Sky

     One night in late August I was feeling somewhat restless and unable to sleep. I stepped out to my porch and took a seat and took in my surroundings. It was a cool clear night, the kind that tells me that summer in the mountains is drawing to a close. The place I call home sits at nearly 8200 feet above sea level and is nearly an hour away from the closest thing resembling a decent sized city and because of this the night sky is especially brilliant with stars without the hindrance of light pollution. On such a clear night I knew the stars were in all their glory and could easily imagine the twinkling sky in my mind.

     The stars that shone down on me that night were the same stars that were shining the night I was born, that were resplendent on the nights my grandmother spent on her uncle’s farm, that were breathtaking on the nights the mountain men laid their heads down after a long day of hunting and trapping, and that were so vivid on the night the Utes that inhabited these mountains long ago and performed their sacred Bear Dance. Long after my time is done; those stars will continue to shine down. It never fails to amaze me that something so beautiful is also so dependable. As I sat there enjoying the cool night air I began to realize that I have stars in my life as well.

    In such a fast paced and ever changing world we must look harder and harder for those dependable people who will be the stars in our hearts. These stars come to us in the form of family and friends and, on occasion, complete strangers. First, we have family. The people who were there in the beginning and who will be there either in body or spirit when we pass on. Then, we have our friends. The stars we didn’t see before but shine bright now. Finally we have the kind stranger. The star you never noticed before and might never see again though you know it’s there.

     I was reminded of the astronomy classes I used to teach. These stars in the sky are not random. To the north is Polaris, that one star that never wavers and guides us straight and true. Polaris is that special person such as a spouse or parent who helps direct the course of your life just as Polaris guided the early explorers. Over there, lies Ursa Major, the big bear in the sky. A group of stars that, when combined, show us another way. Friends and family band together in times of need to help us just as mine did after I lost my sight. Off in the distance is a shooting star. We only see it for an instance and then it’s gone. In the most unlikely moment a stranger appears to us and shows us that which is best in humanity and then, after such a short moment, they are gone though their brilliant radiance stays with us forever. Is that another shooting star? No, it’s just an airplane passing overhead. It is not what we thought it was at first just as some people we come across in our sky are not the good people we originally mistook them for. I do not know the name of some of those stars up there. They do not seem to be a part of any constellation. But those stars are there nonetheless. In our lives there are people you may never personally meet or remember but they have shone on your heart regardless because they have done a good deed for you that you never even realized. They are still stars because they did not seek recognition for their kind act, they simply shine and inspire.

     My thoughts are interrupted by the distant rumble of thunder and I notice the wind is picking up. A storm has formed over the Divide and the hour is late. But before I head in I pause to give thanks. I am thankful for what this night has given me. I am thankful for the stars in the sky. But most importantly, I am deeply grateful for all those stars, both seen and unseen, that shine in my soul on even the darkest of nights. With such a bright glow inside me, I know I will sleep well in these mountains.