It was 2:00 on a Saturday morning when I
quietly backed my Prius out of the
garage and headed out to the desert and
Joshua Tree National Park 150 miles
away. It takes a while to get away
from the city lights here in Southern
California. And until you do you
are unable to see the magnificent night
sky. It wasn't until I arrived in
the park that I was able to truly enjoy
the wonders of the heavens. And it
wasn't until my plans for a sunrise shot
were foiled that I parked my car by the
side of the road, shut off the light and
stepped out into the cool night air.
Lifting your eyes to gaze at the
immensity of the galaxy is almost
involuntary. Our struggles, our
wars over religion and ideology which
seem so important in the light of day
shrink to insignificance. I feel
small ... and blessed to be on this
earth at this time under this beautiful
sky. One star was especially
bright, almost blindingly bright.
It was rising in the eastern sky as the
night advanced and the dawn drew ever
closer.
But there is a sunrise to shoot and it's
only an hour or so away. With my
first plan thwarted I needed a backup
and fast. The decision was made.
A spot I had scouted weeks before 30 or
40 minutes east of Twentynine Palms
would be the place. I had to
hurry. I followed the star to the
spot I had in mind. When I arrived
the eastern sky was already starting to
turn gray. I grabbed my gear and
began wandering around in the fading
darkness. In time I came upon a
sandy wash where smoke trees grew.
The eastern horizon was now a golden
glow. The smoke tree stood
silhouetted against the sky. And
the star that had guided me, the Morning
Star, still stood bright in the
gathering blue of the sky. Ah,
life is good.
