Starry, starry night...

Last night as I was driving home from a family gathering, the crystal clear, voluminously starry night reached down and spoke to my soul. I had no choice but to pull over and gaze up into infinity...into eternity...and witness firsthand the beauty of our brightly shining universe.

I was moved to tears by the breathtaking wonder of the sheer magic of last night's sky. For those of us who live in the Pacific Northwest, clouds very often hide this vision, but after a much needed cloudless day of warm spring sunshine, the stars came out in full force.

It brought back to my memory two things: First, as a little girl growing up in central Texas, I would play outdoors late into the evenings in the long hot summers with my brothers and cousins. I remember having my Mason jar in hand and running to catch fireflies as we entertained ourselves while our parents were on the patio getting caught up on all the latest gossip. The night skies made a big impression on me then, with the stars so bright and shining and innumerable...children's laughter echoing in the dark...any worries or cares long forgotten...such fond childhood memories for me. And I was taken back to that same state of mind as I looked heavenward last night - present, carefree and in love with life itself.

The second memory that came to me was in song, and I heard my soul singing the lyrics during this magical moment. For those readers of this blog who are children of the 60s, I'm sure you already know to which song I refer. Music artist Don McLean penned the lyrics to what was to become a beautiful eulogy to artist Vincent Van Gogh's tragic ending of his life. 'Starry, Starry Night' became a hit in 1972, and its poetic words always come to mind on those mesmerizing starry evenings:

Starry starry night
Paint your palette blue and grey
Look out on a summer's day
With eyes that know the darkness in my soul

One can never plan such moments in one's life when tears come simply from the awe of the natural beauty around us. However, when those moments of epiphanal beauty (my new phrase meaning soul epiphany beauty!) appear in my life, I am learning to take note, to pause if only for a moment, and to allow the flow of the magic to have its way with me. I am learning to listen to my heart at those times, and to enjoy...every single enchanting second of the present moment and the radiant gift of life.