THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM in Postcards 4

  • Dec. 22, 2020, 11:27 p.m.
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  • Public

We found a tiny parking space on the Sunset Cliffs high above the sea. The sun was setting, and there were crowds everywhere. Moms and dads and kids with dogs rushed and ran everywhere. Sounds of breaking surf filled my ears. As the sun finally slipped behind a thin strip of clouds, some of the families left, and other’s arrived with new kids, dogs, and tripods.

We were slightly in the second line of sky watchers sitting on a giant water pipe. One lady who had been there the night before showed us exactly where in the sky lay South West. Just moments later I saw a speck of light in the darkening sky. Most of the world around us grew quiet.

Far out to sea a sports fisherman headed back to harbor. He must have had a very successful trip as almost a hundred birds followed him home. We had brought our best camera, but it wasn’t near as good as most of the other’s around us. It could catch a few of the birds though. It caught Jupiter and Saturn as one went near the other as they do every 20 years. This time the planets were the closest in alignment since 1223. Imagine who was watching them then.

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  • Himself: Found a crackling fire on Netscape to put on the TV. Fixed a door here and a roadshow there.
  • Myself: Got to do water aerobics for the first time in a month.
  • Reading: Obama. I admit the politics of it all can get a bit endless.
  • Watching: TGBBS, 60 Minutes, Antiques Roadshow.
  • Photo: George
  • Gratitude’s: A long line up of them.
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Jinn December 23, 2020

I watched the conjunction from our side yard. It was tiny but visible. Strange to think who might have watched it in the past .

NorthernSeeker December 23, 2020

Good on you for going outside to see the planets. Our sky was covered with cloud and it was raining buckets.

Marg December 24, 2020

It’s a sobering thought to think who might have been watching that all that time ago but of course they would have none of the great equipment we have today to get the full effect!

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