From Astronomy Picture of the Day
Today marks the winter solstice, the shortest day and the Sun's lowest declination in the sky. It's the beginning of winter for the northern hemisphere and the summer in the south. This wheel has been turning for billions of years, long before we crawled blinking out of our caves and will continue for several billion more, long after we have vanished from the planet.
Whatever the mystics and popes may suppose, we are not the ultimate expression of life and our paltry span is a mere tick compared to the time of the dinosaurs or whatever forms of life may arise after we have gone. In the mean time, we are passengers on a beautiful blue-green jewel in the blackness of space, with the extraordinary good fortune to be alive, winners in a cosmic lottery against unimaginable odds. With a prize like that, it is churlish to ask the universe for more, to expect there to be a man behind the curtain pulling the strings.
The fridge is stocked with food, a hamper of goodies from work, the house is decked with greenery and light as a refuge against the winter chill. It is time to celebrate the turning of the year, in whatever manner seems fitting to your traditions. I will simply raise a glass and bid you all good cheer!
1 comment:
Lovely piece of writing there. Thanks for the good wishes, and same to you.
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