And God said, “Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. God set them in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth, to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. Genesis 1:14-18 New Revised Standard Version

And the stars

My commute home this time of year involves driving into the last bit of light after the sun has set. Last night Jupiter and Venus guided me home as I traveled west. In the summer the days are long and I get home with the sun still in the sky. But in the winter I pause before I go inside and look up at the sky when it’s clear. We live far away from the city, and I can see the Milky Way nearly every night that it isn’t obscured by clouds. Right now the Pleiades are visible to the east when I get home and Aldebaran of Taurus is just peaking above the horizon. Stars are not only useful for navigation and time telling but they’re beautiful too. I’m thankful for stars.

For signs and for seasons and for days and years

While last night’s sky was clear, tonight it is snowing and foggy. I drove home slowly. One of the things I love most about Colorado is the seasons. In the South, where I spent my childhood, it’s hot and then it’s not as hot. I used to stare wistfully at the calendar pictures in December and wonder what it was like to experience snow. Now I live in a place with proper seasons, though our summer is pretty short (my car has snow tires on it more of the year than not). Today I’m thankful for seasons.