Soul Nugget 1: On Appreciating the Mysteries of the Universe

I love looking at the stars on clear autumn nights. If you're ever feeling dead or stuck in a rut of the ordinary mundaneness of life, just go take a look outside on such a night and if you're anything like me, you'll feel an awakening happen in the deepest part of your being.

For me, it always give me an overwhelming feeling of insignificance mixed with purpose... that somehow I have an irreplaceable part to play in The Great Story of the Cosmos.

It makes you wonder, doesn't it? What am I created for? Why am I here?

What blows my mind is how far away stars really are. The closest star to Earth (other than the sun) is over 4 light-years away. Think about that. The light of the closest star to us is more 4 years old by the time it reaches your retinas. Think of all that has happened in the last 4 years. When the light of that closest star that I saw tonight was first emitted, I was 17 beginning my senior year of high school.

Oh, how much has happened since then! I've experienced so much since then... I've found love and lost it. I've had my heart-broken, and I've broken someone else's heart. I've done things that I'm proud of, and some things I'm not. I've learned so much - enough to realize that in reality, I actually know less than I thought I knew back then!

Well, here's to you starlight. Kudos. Mission accomplished. You traveled over 4 light-years... about 24 trillion miles just to enter through my pupils 1.5 millimeters in diameter. That's a long journey just to be noticed casually by those who actually take the time to look. I think that considering how long that starlight traveled to get here, the least we can do is pay attention to it every once in a while!