¢ Watching for shooting stars

The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims God’s handiwork. Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge. There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.

Psalm 19:1–4 (NRSV)

Lying side by side on a summer night, eagerly watching the sky –ready to welcome those shooting stars that the August dark brings each year. Groundsheet underneath us, blankets over us keeping out the late-night chill; flat on our backs, looking straight up, we wait.

There we are, cosseted and covered, ‘Oooo’ and ‘Ahhhh’ ready on our lips; lying on the grass, watching the heavens, waiting for a streak of light.

‘There’s one!’ ‘And another!’ ‘Did you see that one there?’ ‘That was the best so far!’ Shooting stars cross the midnight sky, random trails of white light; fast, bright stars live for a moment, dust going out in a blaze of glory.

We wait, we watch, we wonder at this awesome, free, annual show. We are ready with anticipation, excited with expectation, looking for the next line of light.

‘Did I just hear our local badger strolling by?’ Not too sure if she might come over to nibble our toes. But our eyes stay fixed on the sky above, not wanting to miss any stars in this show.

The night becomes chill and damp; we begin to grow cold and tired. ‘It’s time to go in.’ ‘No, just one more!’

So, we wait till we’ve seen another shooting star, the blaze from a comet’s tail, then wearily stumble inside to snuggle down in our softer, warmer beds.

Our night-time adventure is over for this year, but our minds are full at the beauty and wonder of the show. The cold is soon forgotten yet the memories of the night will stay with us till August comes round again.

We could not see them all –though we would have liked to have tried! The rare sight we saw cut a path across our souls leading to the light that is God.

The beauty of that briefest fire, the blazing seconds that split the sky, is a fleeting moment in a fleeting life, yet with such a potential for beauty. The heavens truly told the glory of God, their silent, brilliant voice going out to the ends of the earth.

Simon and Kira Taylor Autumn in August 23

In the first half of August every year, we have, in Devon, the wonder of the Perseid meteor show as the Earth passes through the trail of dust and debris behind the Swift-Tuttle comet. This was first recorded in 36 AD, and at its peak there can be 60 or more shooting stars in an hour.