How often at night when the heavens are bright
With the light of the glittering stars,
Have I stood there amazed and asked as I gazed,
If their glory exceeds that of ours.

Home, home on the range, where the deer and the antelope play,
Where seldom is heard a discouraging word,
and the skies are not cloudy all day.
. . . . . . . . . .

Laying on the lawn at night gazing at the stars and learning the constellations from our father and mother, who had learned them from their fathers and mothers, and they from theirs, back, back into the past, was one of the joys of me and my brothers. We loved learning the difference between stars and planets and finding the Pole Star of true north. There was Orion with his gleaming sword, the Great and Little Bears, Cassaeopia’s throne, and yes, we did learn the Latin names, too. Do parents still lie on the ground with their children and show them the heavens? Or are their children so enthralled with Social Media, texting, computer games and the like that they never look up at the heavens, still less what might be at their own feet?

I can’t help but ask myself when I see the Mall Zombies wandering down the halls, rude and foul mouthed, not even seeing or caring about other other people, what they will do when the plug gets pulled and the lights go out. Are they even prepared to take care of themselves if the need arises? How will your children fare? Do they know how to work or even be responsible in any way?

I think we have many people who will succumb to despair and fear in straitened circumstances, while others will turn to crime and violence to get what they want.

Lest you think I have not seen such circumstances, I was living in Alaska on March 27, 1964 when the Good Friday earthquake struck. We were fortunate in Anchorage then because for the most part people were somewhat prepared and helped each other. But there were certainly others who indulged in uncivil and criminal acts.

We need to strengthen our children, homes and communities to prepare them for what they may face.

Parents and children need to bless the ties that bind them and learn together the things of glory that surround them.

Even now, living far north, where one cannot even see stars in summer and it’s so cold to be out in winter, our children show their children the stars and northern lights, rousing them in the middle of the night, bundling them and carrying them out to SEE.

I love to sing the forgotten verse of “Home On The Range” to remember those beautiful times and the questions of creation. Do any of the other stars’ glory exceed that of our own?

Why are we so afraid to acknowledge all the beauty around us, to be thankful for creation’s miracle? Make time to teach your children of wonder. Caring parents used to do that in order to humanize their children, to pass on their own love and wonder.