Star
People
“We
are all made out of stardust. The iron in the hemoglobin molecules in
your right hand came from a star that blew up 8 billion years ago.
The iron in your left hand came from another star.”
Jill
Tartar (American Astronomer)
Some
of my friends who attended the Oprah Winfrey “Living the Life You
Want” seminar in Atlanta, told me of one very impressive thing she
did. On Friday, she kicked off the seminar with an
inspiring meditation about human potential. In the darkened arena,
she said something like the quote above, and at the word 'stardust,'
all the bracelets given to participants when they registered, lit
up—thousands of tiny white lights twinkled all around. Very cool.
My
mind wants to grasp that concept, but I have trouble figuring it out.
What does it mean that we came from the stars? I can see that as a
powerful suggestion, but I'm not sure why. Perhaps it means that we
are meant to shine—I think that was the message Oprah wanted to
deliver. Perhaps it means that there exists within us, as part of our
very being, something so ancient and elemental that we can't even
understand its power. Hemoglobin, after all, is what carries the
oxygen without which we cannot exist. Maybe there would be no life as we
know it on this planet had it not been for that iron wielding star explosion billions of years ago.
I
wonder whether knowing you are made of stardust means something to
you. Is it better somehow than being made mostly of water (which we
are)? Or being a complex organization of cells with atomic
energy (which we are)? I don't know. But I do know a little something
about seeing yourself as a wonder to behold. “...I am fearfully
and wonderfully made...” (Psalm 139:14) Whether that came from
stardust, or water, or divine action, who can say? We all are fabulous
creations with the vast diversity of the stars.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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