The Night
2004-01-24 - 5:57 p.m.

The sky at night is a magical thing. It is close enough to fill up my vision, but too far away to touch, big enough to be mysterious, but familiar enough to be a comfort.

It is dotted with a trillion stars, more than enough for every man, woman, and child on the face of the earth. Each one shines a miniscule pinpoint of light as a dim placeholder for a heavenly body many times larger than this sphere on which I exist. Even after two thousand years of civilization, God’s stars still make a mockery of our five-pointed imitations. I like to imagine gives a warm chuckle when he sees them, like a parent looking at the sloppy, heartfelt drawing of their young child.

The night breeze is magical, and it brushes my face like the scent of the ocean, all at once magnificent and intimate. It carries the scent of a virgin world. There are no industrial fumes here, no manmade vapors to sully the purity of the atmosphere. There is only the scent of dew-damped grass and wet dirt.

In this moment, experiencing these wonders, I am a child again, every one of my twenty years washed away in the sheer splendor of the night. I still wonder when I look at the stars, and I am still blown away when I truly consider the power of their Creator.

The night is a gift from Him, and the rocks and the trees will not be needed to praise it tonight.