Of Man and Meteors

heavenly bodies

I am fortunate to live in an area far enough away from civilization that conversations in my village center around what time we are getting up in the middle of the night to watch meteor showers.  I am fortunate that among us out here, speech is often stripped from our tongues in honor of the sound of running rivers and cottonwood leaves shaking in the wind and coyotes on the hunt.  I am fortunate to live in a land without the annoyance of artificial lights and an ability to view the heavens without impediment.  I am fortunate to know the silence that ensues when one sits in the dark without fear.

The peak of the Geminid meteor showers this night is an opportunity to set aside the artificial, computer-generated, virtual charts of the planets – the tools of trade in modern astrology – and to join our astronomical and astrological masters and teachers – the ancient shepherds of the middle east – in the simple appreciation and wonder of the dome of the sky.