The Random Yak

During April 20-26 we observe “Sky Awareness Week.”

First things first: no matter what the Goracle and his pantheon of (false) prophets tell you, it isn’t falling.  Or crashing.  Or heating up like a giant cosmic microwave-based version of the Death Star out to destroy first the polar bears and then the rest of civilization.

Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, take a minute and think about the last time you sat and looked at the sky?  Can you even remember?

I’ve looked at the sky more in the past three weeks than I looked in the past five years.  (Which is not to say I hadn’t looked, but more that I hadn’t seen.)  I have seen it cloudless blue, aflame with the fire of dawn, filled with stars too numerous to count, and dotted with clouds that look (to Yak the Younger’s eyes, at least) like everything from cockatiels to crocodiles.  I have watched it.  I have paid attention.

I never cease to marvel at the way I get wrapped up in little things.  The front doorknob needs replacing.  A continuance needs drafting.  One client needs a contract, and another wants a release from one.  Bills want paying, the lawn wants mowing, and the skunk living under the woodshed didn’t respond to my 3 day notice to cease stink or quit.

But every night Orion paths a little closer to the horizon, and every night the moon rises overhead.  The clouds play their constant games of tag-and-chase, one minute puffy like the cotton balls the kitten ate last week, the next strung out in mare’s tails or clustered thickly with a promise of rain. 

Every day and every night, the Heavens declare the Glory of God, and I am too busy to notice. 

Stop a minute.  Look out the window and really see.  Be aware of something greater than the bills, the clients, and the lawn.  Take comfort in the knowledge that the God who hung the stars in the sky – and not only hung them but knows how many there are – also knows your name.

The bills will be there tomorrow, and if they’re not, the debts they represent will be.  The client’s problems can be solved.  It doesn’t take much time from your day to look upward, though it may take a little longer to see what’s there and allow yourself to feel the awe and wonder that should go with it.

Take the time.  Learn to see what’s there, and to appreciate what it stands for.

The sky isn’t falling, but it’s still too important to miss.

Trackposted to Pirate’s Cove, Big Dog’s Weblog, Cao’s Blog, Conservative Cat, and Maggie’s Notebook, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.