All because of the Stars

In the film The City Dark, Jeff Kuhn, astronomer at the University of Hawai’i, states “If our civilization didn't see the stars and didn't see how big the universe was, would they come to believe that they’re more important in this much tinier universe because that’s all they see?” (qtd. in City Dark). I believe that if people did not see the stars they would believe they are more important in the universe. If people do not see that there is something bigger than them of course they will think they are more important. People would think they are the most powerful and more dominate than the animals and plants. People think that because animals and plants do not speak that they are less intelligent than themselves. But, plants and animals are smart in different ways. Plants eat, drink, breath, and reproduce just as humans only in a different manner. Animals eat, drink, breath, and reproduce just as humans and usually in a similar manner. Aren't humans a type of animal? Doesn't that make us in a way equal as the others? According to the food chain we are higher than other animals but if I was to come into a situation with a lion I would not see myself being more powerful than him. The lion would dominate over me. How do I know there are lions though? I don’t walk out my door and see them. I am educated that in another part of the world there are animals that do not live on the continent that I live on. How do people know that there are other continents? Before there were cities full of lights a man looked up at the clear sky and saw millions of stars and believed that there is more stuff past his home. A man explored the lands, buy star navigation, and came across things he had never seen before. A man build a boat and sailed through the ocean, by star navigation, and discovered land, animals, plants, and people that he had never seen before. I know that there is a lion in Africa because a man followed the stars and discovered that the world is more than it seems. People are only germs compared to the universe. How do I know that there is a universe? One, I can look up in the sky and see a sea of stars. Two, men and women risked their lives to fly toward the stars to see if there is more than just stars. All of these adventures were all because some looked up at the stars and realized that there is something bigger than them. All because of the stars…

Twinkle Twinkle Little Colt

Buttercup when pregnant

 Buttercup when pregnant

Buttercup and her colt

Underneath the star filled sky of Hankamer, Texas, I watched the miracle of life. Our family horse, Buttercup, gave birth to her beautiful colt. The sweet relief on her face, after carrying the large baby after so many months, was absolutely amazing. Not only was Buttercup relieved, but my family was relieved that she had a successful birth. My family and I watched as Buttercup cared for her baby. TShe licked the colt clean and helped it stay standing when it would stumble. It was such a wonderful experience and very emotional for all of us. I looked over at my father and noticed a tear in his eye. The amazement of the entire family and all the friends around me was comforting. As we watched the two, the colt began to find Buttercups nipple so it could eat. We looked at each other in astonishment, amazed at how the colt knew that was her source of nourishment. It is explainable how the colt knew without having to be told. It is amazing to think of how the colt was once sperm in the male horse and an egg in Buttercup then it comes together and grows into a baby horse. Then once the colt it fully configured it naturally comes out and into the world. Without instruction the colt learns to balance and walk experiencing the world through its newly developed eyes. It was the little things that amazed us. As we walked out of the barn to head home I looked up and stopped in my tracks to admire the sky. Stars were everywhere I looked. I was able to detect constellations. As I began to see the way the stars lined up I began to wonder how the constellations work. How did the stars form in space? What is the purpose of stars? While staring at the stars I began to realize how amazing the night sky is. I began to see the beauty in the sky. It is weird how the stars come together naturally, with no instructions, just like the colt being born. The stars line up and create pictures and have meanings, same as the colt has a meaning. I am not sure what the meanings of the stars are, or the meaning of the colt is, but I believe they do have a meaning. 

“Reading the Obituary Page” by Linda Pastan and “Request” by Lawrence Raab, are two poems of similar interest. Both of these poems can be associated with death.

“Reading the Obituary Page”, when first read, can be thought as about a little kids birthday party. Looking at the poem again, you can see the narrator is realizing that death will come. Pastan writes “in starched dresses/with ribbons/ in miniature jackets/ and tiny ties”. When Pastan was a child, when accompanying a birthday party you dressed in a dress or jacket with your bow ties. When people pass away they are dressed in a dress or jacket with their bow ties. When Pastan writes “we would circle/ the chairs/ at birthday parties/ when the music stopped, lunge to be seated”, literally she mean the children are playing musical chairs but figuratively she could be meaning that everyone is running around having fun with life and when their life (music) stops they lunge into a casket (seat). To end the poem Pastan writes, “one/ by one we were welcomed to hard ground and empty air”. What she could mean is that one by one her friends began to die, welcomed to hard ground (being buried) and empty air (death).

“Request”, is about a person who is sitting down, probably close to death, deciding what song that they want played at their funeral. Raab writes, “Play it at the end of the service/after my friends have spoken/I don’t believe I’ll be listening in”. One can tell that the narrator is talking about a funeral because at funerals music is played at the end, your friends go up and speak memories of you, and the narrator also says “I don’t believe I’ll be listening in”, which tells the reader that he will be dead. Not only is the narrator picking a song to be played at their funeral but they want to pick something that has a bit of cheer in it. Raab writes “Sad enough/at first, but doesn’t it slide into/tapping your feet, then clapping your hands”.