Life's Simplicity

When I was young, my favorite time of day was night, especially a clear summer night. On these nights I would lie on the deck off of my back porch and just stare up into the heavens. There were no city lights to intrude and only the sounds of the crickets.

My Dad and I would lie out there for hours – on our backs with the cooling night breeze offering a break from the summer sun. He would point out the big and little dipper while we argued over which sparkling ball of fire the North Star was. The one constellation that both of us automatically could find was Orion’s Belt. Those three luminaries were unmistakable even to my childish eyes.

There was only one rule made by tacit agreement: we could talk about nothing but the sky. After about ten minutes my entire world was consumed by the sky. Nothing else existed – no siblings, no chores, nothing but the gases burning millions of light years away.

I often wonder where those innocent nights disappeared to. One day I’m lying on my back and the next I’m too busy to even notice the darkness. Where did all of life’s simplicity go?