The night sky held a special kind of fascination for him. It was a constant in his life, and where possible he would pay homage to it. He liked to do it last thing of a night, before sleep claimed him. With teeth freshly brushed, and the house lights dimmed behind him, he would step out onto the verandah and slip into the backyard.

In summer, the coolness of grass tickled his feet as he slowly arched his neck back, taking in the splendour of the night sky. There was something about the scent of the grass underfoot and the majestic canopy above that stilled his thoughts and quietened his mind. He had learned to stay still, simply breathing in and out. By not thinking too hard about anything that had happened before in the day that had passed or worrying too much about what might lay ahead, things would fall into a shape of sorts.

The waxing and waning of the moon by increments provided a continuous delight, and one that was missed when it was shrouded in complete darkness. Planets would appear, providing an alternate source of light and fascination. On crisp, clear nights, he could track shooting stars scuttling across the night sky. He would focus his eyes, doing his best to follow their path until they vanished or slipped from view.

There was a clarity in the winter months, in addition to the coolness in the air. He really had to watch his breath then, as it tended to puff up and obscure his vision with warm clouds of vapour. The sky seemed sharper at these times. Cloudy nights still pulled him outside. It was only heavy rain that halted his worn orbit from the house to the place where he watched the night sky.

I’m participating in this blogging challenge for the month of January, which supports starting the year on the “write” track. You can find out more about the challenge, join in and read other posts here.

Now I have reached the end of ‘Bloganuary’, I would like to say thank you to everyone who has read these posts, and especially those who have provided comments along the way. I really appreciate it.

Photo: rising moon