OLD YEAR’S REFLECTIONS: Genuine Wondrous Night Lights
As we approach the end of yet another lap around our Sun – my 39th to be exact – and set ourselves in gear for the next one, I can’t get “Webb’s First Deep Field” (i.e. the first full-color image released from the next-generation James Webb Space Telescope*) out of my mind.
Perhaps it’s because I keep looking up at the sky with anxiety – preparing for the annual nuisance onslaught (which has already commenced with sporadic discharges), and the stars are just brilliant.
How often do we look up and marvel at the night sky, far less be inspired – as our ancestors had been; not only divining their fate through astrology, bur defining complex navigation/mathematical guideposts.
In fact, I wager that most simply don’t look up; albeit some are so depressed and downtrodden that their heads are hanging low.
Yet, tonight, thousands will crane their necks for hours to witness the man made spectacle of fireworks – rather than enjoy the universe’s masterpiece.
It would not be ‘so bad’ if they were ‘silent’ but our added interest in ‘making noise’ is one of those rare motivators that only our species seems to enjoy.
I have always enjoyed the night sky; my Grandfather would encourage me to use his binoculars to look out and we would discuss the various stars, patterns and lunar movements.
So, tonight, as I looked up I reflected that many of the stars whose light I am enjoying, have long-since died – yet, their impact and beauty is still being experienced today. My Grandparents and a number of other persons were like those stars – they burned bright in their own time, and their efforts have left ripples in our time.
Fireworks on the other hand, like many persons’ lives are filled with “sound and fury; signifying nothing” and end in puffs of smoke, only to be blown away in a moment – and forgotten.
For 2024, I recommit to living a life that would seek to be a light for my family, friends, co-workers and the wider society; hopefully it will continue to offer benefit long after I am gone – like those genuine celestial orbs of light and awe.
*It is the sharpest infrared image of the distant universe ever produced, according to NASA.Space Telescope Science Institute / NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO