Moving back home after my first year of college meant downsizing to the smallest bedroom, my youngest sister’s old room. As she moved into a bigger bedroom, she left behind many gems. These included her kindergarten artwork, bright green wall paint, and a nice ballet bar for me to practice my moves on; you could say I was very lucky.
The luck continues with the real gems that were left behind for me: a wide array of glow-in-the-dark stars scattered along the ceiling, the ceiling fan, and the walls.
Every night as I drift to my dreams, the stars begin to slowly appear and begin their nightly duty of glowing as brightly as they possibly can.
No matter how amazing, terrible, beautiful, or stale the day was, I can always count on the stars coming out and shining. They simply hint to me that the day is to be left as it was and accepted for everything that was included in the 24 hours of it.
They are a reminder that tomorrow brings for me a new day, and for the moment, I can accept the whole day as a product of its simple or confusing moments.
The galaxy of stars, for me, is a sign of peace and rest.
I believe that everyone deserves their own galaxy of glow-in-the-dark starts to look up at and dream with.
If not your own set of passed down stars, then let it be the real night sky of stars.
Or maybe, your set of glow-in-the-dark stars could be a good book, your favorite song, a session of painting, or another run with Pokémon Go. Let it be anything that lets you breathe, something that lets you know that today was good, and you did well.
Too often, I let myself fall asleep to the sound of worries and concerns about the past day or the day that is coming. I go to bed with the voices of negativity surrounding me and telling me that I didn’t do good enough.
And so I allow this cycle to go on, a cycle of negativity and doubt.
This changes when I look at the stars and when I believe in them and in their sign of peace. I am reminded of the beauty in all of the faults and of the successes in the day.
I fall asleep to my dreams taking lefts and rights on different tangents, leading me to having dreams about kangaroos sipping tea and nibbling on crumb cake around a table shaped like an orange. (Caution: This dream may also be a result of me having espresso past 6:00 p.m.).
I know I can count on my stars, so now go and find what you can count on to create peace in your night.
Find your stars. Believe in your stars.
