Finding Light in the Darkest Hour

Sometimes it means to be far from the light are possible.

I took this photo 2 years ago, which I truly think was and still is an amazing moment to witness, and capture. Anyone into stargazing will tell you, you need the darkest night possible for this.

It is true, you need a moonless night, pitch dark landscape away from the city and some clear skies. Here is the thing, once of those elements come together, it’s not dark anymore!

You need to be away from the pollution; the light pollution. It’s one of those journeys you are told to step away from the light instead of following it. You need to look up, and in some places just straight ahead will do, just above the horizon. Anywhere but down I guess. You will most likely feel different, no sense of directions, no indicators, no guiding signs, just pitch darkness. It takes few minutes, and your eyes will adjust.

Then you see it. A majestic scene with thousands of stories painted all around you. It is not dark anymore. You are in a real and actual moment of magic, illuminated by millions of stars, across millions of galaxies, and in the presence of the whole universe. Stories that stretch back 10 billion years at least. That same painting your ancestors saw, and those before them. It is never dark from this point onward.

Sometimes you really have to turn off the light, you have to give up what you thought was your guide and map. You have to walk away from the pollution, and just say NO to that comforting source of light calling you. It will be scary, it will be dark, and you will have doubts, endless doubts.

But once your eyes adjust…