https://www.happiness.com/community/uploads/monthly_2020_09/gazing-at-the-stars
Where is your favorite place to look at the sky? I just found mine and realize it's something everyone could use, like a blankie, a teddy bear, a dandelion patch of your own.
I found mine in the swimming pool at Mixon. It's right in the middle of North Charleston, SC, surrounded by lights, a block from the Amtrak station. I wish it was far from the city. I wish it was dark enough to see the Milky Way, but that's not where I live.
The weekend before last, Saturday night, 10 pm, I decided to go for a swim. The gate was locked, so I hopped the fence, and lo', the pool lights were on, the music was low (pretty good mix they play) and it was all mine!
I thought I would work out a bit, start getting back in shape and lose some weight. And I did, 400 yds, 8 laps, good enough for a start.
Then I looked up. Cumulus ghosts roamed the sky, their conversations lit from within, like Robbie the Robot flashes each time he speaks.
And peaking from behind these giants, like jewels on a string, Jupiter, Saturn, Mars and the Moon from right to left. Venus had set as the Earth rolled away from it and toward the rising Moon and Mars. Antares, Scorpio's red beating heart between them. Arcturus, the orange eye above me and Vega ushering in the Summer Triangle rising in the East.
A dark field somewhere would have a hoard of stars and constellations, and that would be nice. A chair or recliner would be comfortable. A telescope or binoculars would open the heavens a little more. A few friends to chat with. And bug spray. A snack, at least something to drink. A light blanket or just a bed sheet for the chill and dew.
But I don't live there. I'd have to bring all those things, drive there, set up, pack up and drive home. I live here. This warm swimming pool, with the music on low and the pool lights making the most beautiful aqua-blue, yellow and orange which swirls and folds around me with every motion I make. My skin glows underwater. A chorus of frogs crescendos and ebbs and crescendos again. And not a but.
Don't wait for the perfect spot. Look up. It's there. It's always there, waiting for you to look, tonight, wherever you might be.