America

The Warmth of the Closest Star

I found this to be the loveliest glimpse of understanding the universe, of trying to impart wonder about our existence.  Sasha Sagan, Carl Sagan's daughter, wrote about her "mini existential crisis" when confronted with death and her parents lovely response to it:

“You are alive right this second. That is an amazing thing,” they told me. When you consider the nearly infinite number of forks in the road that lead to any single person being born, they said, you must be grateful that you’re you at this very second. Think of the enormous number of potential alternate universes where, for example, your great-great-grandparents never meet and you never come to be. Moreover, you have the pleasure of living on a planet where you have evolved to breathe the air, drink the water, and love the warmth of the closest star. You’re connected to the generations through DNA — and, even farther back, to the universe, because every cell in your body was cooked in the hearts of stars.

Now as a person who is incredibly in love with the warmth of the closest star, I have to tell you these words really speak to me.  Olivia and I have lots of conversation about our universe and God and the intricacy of billions of cells moving in a rhythm that you can hear if you're still. What a lovely way to express the wonder and gratitude of it all to a child.

So worth watching!

In Which Evelyn Does What She Wants

Could It Be??

Everyone has their favorite version, but here's mine.  We've almost made it fellow sunshine lovers!