Outside our world.

Outside our world. Outside our world Outside our world we live in a solar system of seven other planets. The sun; our star provides light and nourishment for our existence. Our solar system takes up only a minuscule fraction of what makes up the Milky Way Galaxy, and outside our galaxy there is a beautiful boundless universe full of possibilities, questions, and truth.

What I often wonder is how many people in society take the time to even think about the Universe? We live in a world where our priorities are often petty and frivolous. Cell phones, TV, celebrities, gossip, and other meaningless things have taken precedence over our lives. We live in a world today where many of us just do the bare minimum to get by and go about leading a limited life closed off from learning and pursuing knowledge. Some people subject themselves to a certain faith that limits them from posing questions, considering alternatives, and understanding other points of view. There are people in this world who do not realize the significance and preciousness of our Earth and choose to slowly destroy it or ignore the dangers we expose it to daily.

All of this is a shame. It seems to me in the history of our existence our ancient ancestors had far more passion and desire to learn about who we are and our place in the Cosmos. Perhaps people assume we know as much as we know and do not care anymore. That could not be farther from the truth, and honestly I think that is a completely cop out on our part.

I remember growing up and being intrigued by the stars and the planets. I am sure most kids had similar experiences. When we were young in elementary school we actually learned about the planets and our solar system. We all were so in awe about it all and we often were eager to ask questions and gain as much knowledge as possible. As many of grew up we stopped looking up and pointing out the familiar constellations and the excitement about the stars and our universe seemed to dissipate. The night sky became mundane and ordinary.

I have always had a love for the stars. My favorite movie since I was 10 has been Contact which was originally a book written by Carl Sagan. If you are not familiar with Carl Sagan, I'd suggest you become familiar with him because he is truly an inspirational amazing man. His thoughts and ideas on the Universe are awe-inspiring,humbling, and beautiful. I know a major component in astronomy is physics. I am not much of a math or physics person, but you do not need know those concepts to appreciate the Universe. Carl Sagan does a brilliant job of explaining the concepts of the Universe in a way that is understood and appreciated by all. He encouraged people to question the Universe even if it was the most simplistic of questions it was always worthy of an answer. He had a way that sparked up the child-like fascination and awe about our Universe that we had forgotten about or set aside.

I really wish that people would take the time to begin to ponder the Universe. I want people to go outside and look at the stars again. I want people to pick up and book or watch a film and learn about the Cosmos. I want people to spark up conversations and debates with their peers and mentors on their ideas and thoughts on our Universe. I think this is so incredibly important. We are a part of the Universe we are the Cosmos. Everything that we are made of and everything that surrounds us is a part of the Universe. It is the very existence of our being. Why should we not question and ponder it? Why do we dismiss it and set it aside? There are so many wonderful amazing discoveries we have yet to discover and so many conversations that have to take place that can help us understand who we are and help us realize that we are just small part of something that is so vast and awesome.

"We make our world significant by the courage of our questions, and by the depth of our answers"--Carl Sagan