In an Endless Galaxy, have seen but only one star..

While at Kipungani in Lamu  a month ago I gazed  deep into the sky of the southern hemisphere using a state of art telescope. Glad I look inside and went  deeper. 

In as much as it is nothing compare to what the Hubble space telescope would provide – it was still awesome. Seeing the universe open up for me is definitely something to write home about.  The awe inspiring Orion constellation – The hunter and its two dogs Canis Major and Canis Minor. Orion to my surprise is the most  magnificent of the entire constellation. It is said to be visible from most places on earth. Then there was  star Sirius – this is the brightest star in the sky, also known as the Dog Star. And then there was , Planet  Jupiter – viewing the largest planet in our solar system is breath taking. It has over 60 moons – am glad at least 4 of the moons were visible with the telescope.  Now looking at our moon with its craters is an experience to make you hold your breath.

In any given galaxy there is approximately one star born a year. It is estimated that there are 100 billion galaxies in the observable universe, therefore there are about 100 billion stars born per year. That means that each day there are  275 million stars born. To keep things in balance there are approximately the same amount of stars dying each day as well.  Scripture equates the number of grains of sand to the number of stars.  Let that sink in.  Looking deep into the night of a starry universe creates an amazing  an amazing moment.  Interesting though – as someone once said “In space there is no suffering. In space there is only creation and light. “

How many miles to Babylon?
Three score and ten.
Can I get there by candle-light?
Yes, and back again.
If your heels are nimble and light,
you may get there by candle-light

If there is ever a book that I have owned in my lifetime that totally freaks me out it is Linda Goodman’s Sun Signs. When I had to disperse my huge collections a few years back -  it was one of the selection of special books that I retained as I couldn’t bear to part with  it. It had been given to me by sister Agnes. Goodman believed there were two things to conquer in life; hate and fear, especially if you sought wisdom. She also observed that those whose star sign is Gemini, like me, have a complete compulsion to stand for people and a desire to appreciate love. Equally  versatile and unpredictable in spirit.

In her book – she still allowed the freedom - Linda said ‘the stars incline, they do not compel…we’re moved like pawns on a chess board in the game of life…by using free will…anyone can change his character, control his environment and the attitudes of those close to them’.
When we do this we become the movers and shakers, not the pawns.

Lunar eclipses have been associated with superstition for centuries. Mariner and explorer Christopher Columbus is said to have saved his men from certain death in the Americas because he knew that a total eclipse of the Moon would occur on February 29, 1504. So he warned native tribe elders that if they did not help them to leave he would make the moon disappear the following night.
You can imagine how terrified the natives were when it really happened. They begged Columbus to restore the moon – and when it returned they provided the food his men needed until they were rescued on June 29, 1504.
Likewise, perhaps the biblical Moses knew about the strange but natural phenomenon of rapid tides, when he led the children out of Israel to cross ‘The Red Sea’?

In this place he reputedly held out his staff and the sea retreated rapidly. He also repeated the ritual after they had crossed, and the tide again returned rapidly, drowning the Egyptian army.

One unique event relating to the rapid retreat and return of the tides can still be experienced at Mont St Michel in France, where for centuries people who were caught between the island and land on the crossing were swept away and drowned.

The sea comes back so quickly if you are half way you cannot complete the crossing. The timing of the tides also relates to the heavenly bodies, the sun and the moon…enough said.

On the flip side we can only see a star in the darkness of night. Try putting resentment, jealousy, greed and anger into the vastness of space, into the night sky.  You will find it gets lost.

"What if each of us were a star?  A galaxy of love.  

You are a point of light.

You were birthed in the amazing creation of the universe and with your birth this universe became more loving and expansive." Thanks Bonnie Tarantion for this inquiry. 

The ancient Egyptians did not use the positions of the stars to produce astrological readings, although they did believe certain constellations could have a negative effect on events.

The Zodiac at Denderra is fundamentally a star map and according to scientists and archaeologists depicts the position of the stars in the night sky 50 years before Christ was born.

Goodman said of the sculpture.  ‘Wherever it is from and whoever carved its symbols, its message is eternal: You are endless galaxies and you have seen but one star’.

Lamu is place in the heart … Thank you Edward Wanami of Kipungani Explorer for taking me through a trip in the universe .. I’m a speck of dust dancing in mote of light. And still I know light and an endless galaxy of love.

What if it was  Hubble space telescope?