“Hootie” – Photo: L.Weikel

Earth Day Wish       

I had a long day today.

When I walked in the door this evening close to 8:30 p.m., Karl already had the pups dressed for success, their harnesses clicked on and leashes attached.

I love walking at night, especially on evenings when the sky is clear and the constellations pop out against an indigo backdrop. And I have to admit, as I’ve admitted before, I simply love, love, love my iPhone’s Sky Guide app.  Honestly, I cannot recommend this app more enthusiastically.

It’s probably weird that I’m writing about an app that identifies the abundance of celestial (and other) bodies existing ‘above’ us (although in truth, they exist beyond our planet in all directions, not just the ‘above’ defined by our limited perspective) on ‘Earth Day.’

But haven’t you noticed? Sometimes we need to ‘look elsewhere’ to fully, deeply, and lovingly recommit to appreciating what we already have right here at home.

Our home.

We Share Her With So Many

As Karl and I walked our usual route, a screech owl trilled its forlorn song. We saw herds of deer in a number of fields (and heard the occasional stomp of a hoof on the ground, in an effort to ward us away). Karl saw two turkeys crossing the road, and vultures were settling on branches conveniently near the carcass of a deer that had unsuccessfully attempted to cross the road earlier in the day.

I described to Karl the amazing escort I’d had as I traveled (very slowly) along a stretch of road in New Jersey early this morning. An osprey with prey hanging from its mouth seemed to be tracking along right beside me. I slowed down long enough to try snapping a photo, since no vehicles were anywhere to be seen in either direction. I wish I could figure out how to edit my photos so I could post a closeup.

Osprey with Prey – Photo: L.Weikel

A Bold Long Arc of Gold

But the best part of this evening was a special gift to us from the cosmos: a bold and brilliant shooting star that fell straight down in front of us, framed by the shadows of the ‘tree tunnel’ we walk through toward the end of our walk. The meteorite tonight, falling precisely as I was describing the astonishing number of license plates I’d seen earlier bearing Karl’s initials, was not one of those quick slips of faint light flitting across the sky. No, it was a bold long arc of gold taking its time as it fell before us, as if some huge giant was writing something in the sky and this was the downward stroke of a capital letter.

We were filled with delight and stopped in our tracks, looked in awe into each other’s eyes, and held each other in a long embrace, celebrating the magic all around us.

I don’t need to tell any of you how precious it is to experience life here on Mother Earth. I just wish we could care for her more generously while we’re still here to enjoy her.

(T-949)