I could go into detail about the grand tour I went on with our Astronomy class that the faculty of Astronomy from UBCO arranged; however, that in itself is self-explanatory given the idea that I love the universe of star births and deaths and everything in the Milky Way and beyond! The tour impressed me so much that I will return for the next one when they open the data centre!!!
On the way back, we stopped for a coffee at A&W. That is where we met Sean. He is a drummer, and he loves music. He was sitting beside us, and I guess we were loud enough that he was listening to our conversation by chance. He has blonde hair. He is 54 years old (he told us his age), a boyish face. He had books spread out over his table. I could see Sean glancing over at us as we were talking amongst each other, “I think it is so cool that our Scientists observe and keep track of these mysterious radio bursts, some at 140 bursts detected, I mean EVERY day another mysterious burst, today alone had 4 bursts.” I exclaimed.
https://perimeterinstitute.ca/news/chime-telescope-detects-more-500-mysterious-fast-radio-bursts-its-first-year-operation and…
https://news.mit.edu/2022/astronomers-detect-radio-heartbeat-billions-light-years-earth-0713
Sean, by this time, shuffled his chair over a nudge, took a sip of his coffee, listening to us.
I continued, “I am amazed that the footprints left on the Moon stay there forever, marking the Moon almost like a scar!” Sean looked like he couldn’t hold off any longer; he jumped into our conversation, introducing himself, then asked, “Do you want to know what my favourite flower is?” We shook our heads, dismayed at not knowing what he was talking about. He continued turning his chair to face us from where he was sitting, “My favourite flower is the dandelion because it is bright like the Sun, and after it dries out, they look like the Moon! And when the petals begin to fall off, they are disbursed like the stars all over the sky.” I had to look up what Sean was saying to us, here is the article that talks about the dandelion and the meaning behind it: https://www.naturetalksandwalks.co.uk/where-does-the-dandelion-get-its-name-from/ .
We were surprised by what he shared with us. He listened to us about the observatory we were at and asked us lots of questions. Sean shared how he suffered from brain damage and had a challenging time, and he also shared that he loves nature and the stars. Sean touched our hearts. He said, “you know how to show God’s love? By caring, saying thank you and being grateful. He also shared, “laughter reduces stress hormones.”
So, readers, to get a laugh here is a kid joke:
“The puzzled astronomy student spent all night wondering where the Sun went…
…but then it dawned on him.
I will always look at a dandelion differently…with more respect… and with thanksgiving for Sean.
Okanagan Valley View 