Cosmic Ballet

So what do you get when the Earth travels through the debris trail of the Tempel-Tuttle comet? A light show of cosmic proportions! Last night was the prime time to watch this year's Leonid meteor shower, and I didn't let the freezing weather stop me from enjoying the show. I guess I should consider myself fortunate that I don't live in a big city (some say I live out in the boonies), and coupled with the fact that my development banned street lights, the perks of no light pollution became apparent.

I dunno why, but the stars seemed to shine extra bright last night. I couldn't help but mentally recite the conversation between Simba, Timon, and Pumbaa about whether or not I was looking at dead kings of the past, fireflies, or burning balls of gas. And as I stood outside, bundled up in sweats, with my head cocked back at a 90 degree angle, it dawned on my just how tiny we really are in comparison to the universe. Everything seemed so far away and disconnected. It was a very humbling and lonely feeling, that is, until the cosmic ballet intervened.

I was on the phone scanning the dark sky when all of a sudden there was a big bright streak across the sky. Perhaps it was because I was alone in my backyard but I started thinking that I was the only one who witnessed that meteoroid at that very moment. But as I'm sure you've figured out by now, I wasn't. Our excitement was apparent over the phone. I think it's pretty cool when two people witness the same shooting star at the same time, from two very different locations, only to have the same shared sentiment of pure and utter amazement. The moment made me smile because I knew that somewhere out there, we were wishing on the same bright star.