A letter

Dated: Oct 1st 2010
Dear Self,
The world is just so immensely beautiful. The sky is beautiful. Today, just a couple of minutes ago, I was out, looking at the night sky. The moon had not yet risen. But the sky was lit by billions of diamond-like stars. It was a perfect analogy to sing “Twinkle Twinkle” to S out by the picnic table as she fell asleep on me.
I am at Hay River, NWT, Canada. Above the 60th parallel. About 500 odd km S of the Arctic Ocean.
From where I sat, one of the long stretches of the beaches at Great Slave Lake, all alone, if I looked up, I had a 365 degree view. But my extended peripheral vision was a good 180 degrees only. Inspite of that, I counted…I saw 23 shooting stars. At that instant, I realized there were millions more shooting themselves out.
It was so still. OK. There were dogs howling that made me think of wolves, for an instant. But still, it was still. Everything. Including me. I did not exist. I just witnessed. Life is happening at this very instant. Life & Death, in a way. I was overcome by so much stillness that I was able to notice so many minute things. I saw many things moving. I don’t know if they were stars or planes(most not likely). I am not hallucinating. I saw them. But I did not know what they were or how they did that. I did not want to know.
Usually, I am the kind who loves to look at the stars from behind a telescope. I might eventually get one. But today, it is one of those days. I saw many stars forming various different shapes. I did not bother to know which is what. I just sat there, looking up, until I had a stiff neck.
I was not hunting for the Aurora tonight. I was not sleepy. It was dark. I was not scared. I was not hoping to do something specific. I was just there. And I did not plan on making any of the above happen.
I am at least 1500km from what I call as ‘home’. But tonight, I feel at home. Here, in this boreal forest, I am at home. As strange as that may sound. ☺
Love,

Why did I want to write a letter to myself?
I was alone in that darkness for something that felt like eternity. I was so overwhelmed. I thought, “Wish Appa was here!” for a while(I learnt my astronomy basics from him). Maybe I wished for a couple other people to be there with me. But, in reality, only I was there. Just myself. I want to share this immense beauty lest I forget it. It is very easy to get lost in small things in everyday life. :)