the truth about shooting stars

for the briefest moment possible, it catches our attention. after all, "movement" is the second variable that attracts our eyes. a shooting star, by scientific viewpoint, is no more than a piece of space debris that experiences combustion due to the velocity and multitude of gaseous elements in the earth's atmosphere upon entry. also called a meteor or meteoroid, it is not to be confused with other heavenly bodies such as comets and asteroids. if a meteor survives its transit in the atmosphere and comes to rest on the ground, the resulting object is called a meteorite; whether it produces an impact crater or not, is subject to the amount of force it strikes the earth with.

so, what is the big fuss about shooting stars (or falling stars)?

subject for consideration, is the frequency that such atmospheric phenomenon is witnessed by the human eye; other than that, frequency alone of such entries are well over a hundred per day.

once again, literature has infused a pure scientific phenomenon with emotions and allegory enough to last 'til the earth itself is no more. at the risk of sounding anti-romantic, shooting stars (henceforth) will never make anyone’s wish come true. don’t get me wrong though… i have had my own share of uttering the first thing i could think of whenever i see a shooting star, and usually it comes out as “wow”, “look”, or “waaa”, so there’s not much to expect from there. but, i just got the thinking the other night… why oh why do people almost always use the phrase, “wish upon a falling star”?

people… ordinary people… wish for something extraordinary to happen in their lives. whether it be a dream getaway, a million dollars, or being swept off their feet by their perfect someone, the longing is there… in each and every person’s heart. so, why am i yapping about shooting/falling stars in the first place? point… frequency. it is (an almost) rare opportunity to see a shooting star… and i have this conviction that the earliest of men (and women) decided to wish upon them because they want a piece of that rarity in their lives to happen. life’s hard enough as it is… wishing is for free. not everyone gets to fulfill their dreams… not everyone ends up with a happily ever after in their lives. (almost) rare is it that we come to see, hear, or even experience our ultimate dreams come to reality. wishing for that earthbound rarity to come into our lives whenever we see a shooting star, we are reminded that it is not impossible for our dreams to come true… rare but not impossible. the human spirit may be unbreakable… but its resolve is not firm. the wonderment of that single streak of light racing across the velvet sky is, at most, enough to awaken one’s inner child and in the process, make one’s resolve a little more firm.

When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires will come to you

If your heart is in your dreams, no request is too extreme
When you wish upon a star as dreamers do

(Fate is kind, she brings to those who love
The sweet fulfillment of their secret longing)

Like a bolt out of the blue, fate steps in and sees you thru
When you wish upon a star, your dreams come true

so, the next time a shooting star catches your eye, don’t feel bad if you don’t get to make a wish… after all, the power to make that wish come true is within you and not out there in space.

-- for all who wished with all their heart