Look Up

I walked outside for an evening stroll around the yard with the dog. Late summer, and the heat was finally beginning to wane. There was a slight breeze as I looked up into the indigo sky. The stars were brilliant tonight. One tiny star, far, far above, separated itself from the rest and zipped rapidly across the sky. The International Space Station I thought to myself, as I watched it track across infinity and fade from sight. I said a short prayer for the astronauts trapped up there in outer space, without a way home. What an age we live in, I thought to myself.  I hope they make it. 

I became quiet as I stared into the sky. Still. My mind had  been full of the news of the day. None of it was good. Darkness everywhere. Wars in every place. Riots and demonstrations on T.V. Baby killing in what amounted to a taco truck. For Free! They said. It all made me sick to my stomach. Caused a tense ball of anxiety to well up in my chest and me to clench my jaw. It made me want to cry. So much darkness. 

But as I looked up into the stars, it all faded away. They twinkled at me, as I stood in my suburban garden, with my dog beside me, busy sniffing the grass. He is coming, they seemed to say, shining brightly in the inky blackness. The breeze moved  and whispered to the trees. He is coming, and the trees replied with a rustling of summer leaves that said they already knew. The Cicadas echoed the rustling leaves. He is coming! they said, with their loud tree song.  The flowers in the garden danced  with the news. He is coming, they said, as they bowed and swayed, on the gentle wind. Spread the word! The swirling eddies of air moved up around my feet and rested briefly on my face, and then I heard it too, the joyous whisper in my ear, He is coming! I smiled hugely into the darkness and said the words out loud, to whomever would hear them. He is coming! 

Now, when these things begin to occur, look up, and lift your heads, because your redemption is drawing near. 

Look up!