Warm summer nights would find a younger version of myself out in the backyard, alone, gazing at the stars. For hours in mosquito laden nights I would ponder the universe. My parents, perhaps to satisfy my curiosity, but more likely to keep me close to home and a little less itchy, bought me a telescope, a long white metal tube on a tripod. Now the night skies were accessible in the comfort of my mosquito free bedroom, and also afforded year round viewing.
When I first saw a magnified moon it frightened me. Awesome!! Such a beautiful landscape. Pristine.
Mom brought me home from a camping trip to watch the lunar landing on TV. I cried that night. I was sad the moon bore the footprints of man and was no longer so mysterious.
The Science and Technology Museum offered an astronomy course when I was in my late teens, which I attended every night. Sometimes there were 4 or 5 of us, but most of the time, it was just me. We were entertained with documentaries on the universe, solar system and the like until the skies were dark enough for viewing. Shivering equally from cold and awe, I saw Saturn for the first time through a 15 inch refracting telescope.
I briefly joined the local astronomy club, but they had a strict policy that you could not believe in God and be an astronomer at the same time. Hmmm.
My engineer Dad harboured a secret desire to work for NASA and I happily accompanied him to Florida to tour the facilities. It was an overwhelming experience. Sadly my Dad never applied to work there. Imagine what might have been.
Along came the series Cosmos and I devoured it all. Carl Sagan’s unhurried personal tour of the universe and science gave me time to think about what he said. When a record album of the music of Cosmos was offered by PBS television for a donation, I was glued to the phone. So for $20, I got the record, and for a few minutes, to talk to the President of PBS. I still have that record today. I revisited Cosmos just last month and it has not lost its appeal for me.
Nowadays I am lucky to see one star besides the moon in our bright city skies, so my telescope is covered over and collecting dust. But there is plenty of viewing on the internet. The universe is largely untouched. Some mystery is left.