Good Things: The sun, the stars, & the moon

I am super excited about the total solar eclipse.  We bought our glasses weeks ago, and I impatiently waited for them to arrive.  I can’t wait to see this once in a lifetime event!

The sun, the stars, …

Part of the reason I am so excited about this eclipse is that my Daddy loved astronomy.  He had a big telescope, and we went out into the country to see Hailey’s Comet and get a glimpse of the Aurora Borealis.  I have an old astronomy book of his with a bright yellow cover that makes me smile whenever I see it on the shelf.  And when I see Orion’s belt at night, I remember that my Daddy showed me this constellation when I was young.  He has been gone for 16 years, but looking up at the stars makes me feel close to him.

Perhaps they are not stars in the sky, but rather openings where our loved ones shine down to let us know they are happy.  -Charlie Brown

And the moon.

When we moved to South Carolina, I was very homesick.  I missed my family.  I missed my nieces.  I missed my friends.  But one night, as I took Maddie out to potty, I looked up and realized that all of my friends and family see the exact same moon as me.  And that fact—the fact that we were all under the same big sky looking at the same beautiful moon–brought me so much comfort.  Whenever I started to miss them deeply, I would just look up at the moon and I wouldn’t feel quite so far away.

Looking at the moon with Bruna…

The moon helped me again after Bruna went back home to Brazil.  Although we don’t look at the exact same stars, we do still share the same moon.  And that moon was the subject of quite the controversy when she was living with us!

On our walk one evening, Dane and I commented about how beautiful the full moon was that night.  Bruna said that it was not a full moon.  She claimed that it was missing a small sliver at the bottom.  Her American Dad and I disagreed, so we googled it.  Well, Bruna was absolutely correct.  The full moon would happen the next night.  There was indeed a tiny sliver missing.

After that, I looked at the moon with a more critical eye.  And every time I think it’s a full moon, I look a little closer just to make sure.  Bruna taught us so many things.  And one of those was to slow down and really look at something—take in all the details, the beauty, the entire picture…

The sun, the stars, and the moon . . .

And Bruna does this—looks carefully at the sun and the stars and the moon—because her Brazilian Dad loves astronomy and has taught her about it.  That love of astronomy helped not only my connection with Bruna, but also my connection with her dad.

And so today and every day, I am grateful for the sun and the stars and the moon.  They make me think of family and help me feel a bit closer to those I love, even though we are miles apart.

What helps you feel closer to your family even when you are far away?  Tell us about it in the comments!

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