12 July 2023 - For Small Creatures Such As We
Many guests come across two nights (12 July & 13 July), so I thought of putting them in one memoir.
As I reflect on these two unforgettable nights under the stars, I realize that this memoir is not just a recollection of activities but also inherently spiritual. Carl Sagan once said, "Science is not only compatible with spirituality; it is a profound source of spirituality." Our deep conversation across those two nights echoes deeply with this notion.
Here are the pictures the young boys and girls took during the workshops. Each photo reveals a stupifying beauty on a scale that dwarfs our existence. Take the image of Carina Nebula by Fox, our entire solar system is smaller than a single pixel in the image.
It reminds me of Sir James Jeans, writing in 1930 of The Mysterious Universe:
Standing on our tiny home planet, we attempt to discover the nature and purpose of the universe. Our first impression is something akin to terror. We find the universe terrifying because of its vast meaningless distances, terrifying because of its inconceivably long vistas of time which dwarf human history to the twinkling of an eye, terrifying because of our extreme loneliness, and because of the material insignificance of our home in space.
But somehow, with good companies, these terrifying concepts became enjoyable. Carl Sagan once wrote, "For small creatures such as we, the vastness is bearable only through love." Facing the awestriking grandeur of the cosmos brought us closer, and the shared love for wonder makes exploring it so incredibly rewarding. And love, in its many forms, made the nights among the stars truly unforgettable.
Date: 12 July 2023, 13 July 2023
Location: Zebra Stone Litchfield, Northern Territory, Australia
