stars

But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars.

"Two men were in prison. One looked down to the mud in despair, the other looked up to the stars in hope."

Like falling stars from the universe we are hurled
Down through the long loneliness of the world
Until we behold the pain, become the pearl

Either we are alone in the universe, or we are not. Both ideas are overwhelming.

When I have a terrible need of - shall I say the word - religion.  Then I go out and paint the stars.

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,
How I wonder what you are!

Surely a man needs a closed place wherein he may strike root and, like the seed, become.  But also he needs the great Milky Way above him and the vast sea spaces, though neither stars nor ocean serve his daily needs.

If you go far enough out
you can see the Universe itself,
all the billion light years summed up time
only as a flash, just as lonely, as distant
as a star on a June night
if you go far enough out.

And still, my friend, if you go far enough out
you are only at the beginning

- of yourself.

Earth-treading stars
that make dark heaven light

Synchronized with the rising moon
Even with the evening star
They were true love written in stone
They were never alone, they were never that far apart