The Stars I See Are Yesteryear's

Photo by K. Hartnett

The stars I see are yesteryear's,

Their glow, from flames of glory past.

And now my life, a light, appears;

How far will my effect be cast?

-- K. Hartnett, October 1997

There is one glory of the Sun, and another of the Moon, and another of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.  (1 Cor. 15:41)

The Pleiades; Jewels of the Winter Sky

Unquestionably the most famous galactic star cluster in the heavens, the Pleiades form a glittering group of six to ten closely spaced stars to the naked eye.  A pair of binoculars or a small telescope, however, reveals a view similar to the one here, with dozens of icy blue diamonds against a background of velvet black.  The Pleiades have been regarded with special esteem among all cultures since antiquity.  To the Greeks, they were the Seven Sisters; to medieval German farmers, a Hen and Her Chicks  To modern day Japanese they are known as the "Subaru" and are used as the logo of cars of the same name.  Although the reference is not positive, most Old Testament translations identify the Pleiades as one of the constellations mentioned in the book of Job as the Lord challenges the patriarch to explain His great power and understanding.

Can you bind the beautiful Pleiades?  Can you loose the cords of Orion?  Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs?  Do you know the laws of the heavens?  Can you set up God's dominion over the earth?  (Job 38:31-33)

The starlight we see at night predates the present.  Due to the vast distances of interstellar space, the light now arriving for us to see left its fiery source many, many years ago.  In this poem, I compare our lives to the stars.  What effect are we having on the darkness around us?  How many generations that follow us will know our influence?