Starry Nights by Alan Bunker

As a kid, the summer evenings between the months of school were wonderful times… staying up late playing with friends, watching TV shows in black and white, or catching and smashing fireflies. The mild evenings also provided opportunities for star-gazing. My older brother was the neighborhood astronomer. When the skies were sufficiently dark and clear, he would set-up his reflecting telescope in the backyard and let us view unique celestial bodies such as Saturn's rings, Mar's mysterious redness, and, of course, the cheesy moon. What a thrill to marvel at the mysterious orbs! It was, however, a bit of a challenge to get the best views of the heavens among the neighboring trees and some glaring street lights. In spite of these restrictions, our backyard was the best place for star-gazing enjoyment. I was torn between excitement and apprehension about being there for I was very afraid of the dark. The evening's stillness was occasionally broken by the click of crickets and more often by scary, mysterious noises. How could my backyard -- my comfortable, personal playground -- appear so unfamiliar and foreboding in the dark? As I gazed at the scattered jewels above, images of horrifying sci-fi movies materialize before me. Would I witness a flying saucer and its eerie, pulsating sounds? I had hoped so! My brother would confidently point out the various arrangements of stars that composed the mythical personages of the constellations. "Seeing" the constellations was difficult but I took his word for it. Oh, I could see the Big Dipper and with luck, Orion's Belt, but for the most part, visualizing those scattered brilliant sparkles as a person or animal easily confounded me. Often, we would see a lone bit of light passing among them, sometimes blinking. Most of us believed that the specs were orbiting satellites or silent, distant jet airplanes. (No UFOs, darn it!) As the night wore on, our expressions of wonderment became whispers to avoid disturbing the older neighbors of the adjacent houses who slept beyond the window screens-- well before the wide-spread use of air conditioners. The highlight of our celestial summer was the Presides meteor shower. No telescope was needed. Sitting back against the comfort of lawn chairs, we relaxed and gazed heavenward, quietly chit-chatting and patiently awaiting the start of the 'show'. Then, suddenly, a blip of light would dart across the sky so fast that all we could exclaim was "Awe"! The meteorite was likely no larger than a grain of sand (we were informed) and that more would be coming soon -- and they did! One was so bright and lasting that it lit up a portion of the eastern sky while leaving a significant trail! Seeing that was worth missing any TV program! About forty years later, on the occasion of our wedding anniversary, my wife and I were enjoying a summer evening stroll along the historic Marietta, Ohio, riverfront. As we looked slightly heavenward across the Ohio River, behold! -- a brilliant, long-tailed shooting star streaked across the starry sky! How romantic -- just like in the movies… (And I was not afraid of the dark!)