We are made of Starstuff.
Use this fun activity to boost your mood, reduce your stress, and cultivate awe.
“We are not under the sky, but of the sky.” – anonymous.
If you’d like to boost your mood, reduce your stress, and cultivate awe, I recommend this fun activity that you can perform towards the end of your day. I’ve enjoyed doing this by myself, and with family and friends, around the world.
Go outside after dark, and look up at the night sky for ten minutes.
To make this activity more interesting, especially with kids, use an astronomy app on your phone or tablet to overlay helpful content over the night sky. I use Sky Guide, though there are many options available.
Why does this work?
Because stargazing cultivates awe. Awe is a mix of wonder, respect, amazement, and sometimes fear, that we have all felt. And numerous research studies have shown that living in awe is good for health. For example, this 2023 study found that, "the more daily awe people experienced, the less stress, less somatic health symptoms, and greater well-being they felt."
For best results — slow down. I have found that combining stargazing with a brief meditation and the following steps, is helpful:
Begin with a few deep breaths (inhale through your nose, and exhale through your mouth).
Choose a patch of the night sky, observe the twinkling stars, and notice any patterns they make.
Choose one star, and watch it intently for one minute. Acknowledge it’s starlight seeping into your eyes. Light that traveled across vast expanses of the universe to reach you, from thousands of years ago, from a star that may not exist anymore. Light older than the pyramids, and possibly older than human civilization.
Remember, as you stand on solid ground, that you are rotating around the center of a vast galaxy of a hundred billion stars. And that this galaxy is just one of a hundred billion more.
Remind yourself that “you are a child of the universe, no less than the trees and the stars.” (as Max Ehrmann wrote).
Finally, take a few deep breaths to complete your meditation.
May you live long and prosper.
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P.S: Carl Sagan’s quote about the universe is worth pondering: “The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff.”
Here’s a video of the night sky last night, using Sky Guide, from my driveway in northern Virginia.