I freeze in the driveway, taking in the moment as I stare at the majestic harvest moon. I often find myself being drawn to the moon’s unusual existence, wondering why other people are not mesmerized by it as well. My strained eyes wander up to the illuminating
orb, and I am instantly brought back to reality. Every day, it reminds me to focus on the big picture, and think about the opportunities that our society has not taken advantage of because we are so focused on ourselves.
The moon is one of the few constants among everything in our world. It controls the tides; the rhythms that we have danced to for centuries. Studies have even shown that our moods are dependent on the stage of the moon. Our earth will always have a connection to the moon that influences everything that we know and understand.
I notice that we often think of different countries as if they are different galaxies. However, when we think of them relative to the universe, they are only a centimeter
away. Hearing people refer to people of different countriesand ethnicities as illegal aliens, makes me realize how oblivious our society is to the similarities that we all have. The diversity of our birth countries and the colors of our skin unite us in a way that we should acknowledge as beautiful.
When I look in the sky, I see more than just the stars and the planets. I see possibilities. Our world is so wrapped up in careers, grades, and our differences, when in reality there is so much more out there. Sometimes I forget how small I am, and how miniscule
our world is in contrast to everything else. I want to know what is out there, and why we
do not spend more time trying to figure it out.
My friend often reminds me before tests and quizzes that there are people starving
in the world, and getting a C versus an A on one test will not ruin my life. Although starvation and grades seem like completely irrelevant analogies, she might be on to something. Even though our world is very minute, there are so many other issues that we should be occupying ourselves with solving.
It is said that the universe is infinite, but my head cannot comprehend the unimaginable.
If it has a wall, science says that there must be something at the other side. On the other
hand, nothing can simply go on forever. So, when I am nervous about my future, my
past, or my present, I look at the moon and the stars. The moon stares down at me and
reminds me that I am simply one 16 year old girl out of a world of 8 billion people, in only one planet of billions, in one galaxy of trillions, in only one universe of endless.
Suddenly, my fears feel like nothing.
