Star Light, Star Bright

I've always felt news reports deeply, whether they're bound to pop culture, politics, or anything in between. The death of Ray Bradbury, George W. Bush's declaration of war in Iraq, Kate Middleton's pregnancies, so many others...I respond on a human, visceral level, something bound to my very being. I just take a gut-punch (positive AND negative) response to news of the miraculous, everyday experiences of the world. 

So it was no surprise then, that news of David Bowie's death sent me on an interlude of sadness. It did, however, make me happy beyond belief that I was able to incorporate him into my daily lessons, in an authentic and natural way.

A lesson on allegory, on literary interpretation: there's really no better way to express the meaning of academic understanding. So it was strange for me to consider that my responses were beyond the academic. For instance, I was awake at 3AM looking for Grace's beloved friend, StarPup.

I've no reason for the name she gave this simple plastic toy: StarPup. There's nothing on him to suggest the name, nor is there any outside influence on her (David Bowie has never been a standby in our house), but Grace chose this morning, at approximately the announced time of David Bowie's death, to ask me to help her find her StarPup. Coincidence?! Yeah...probably. 

But the optimist, the dreamer, the storyteller in me can't help but wonder...maybe? Maybe Grace felt a ripple effect in the universe. Maybe something greater than us allowed us to be heroes, just for one day (and God, isn't that the perpetual role of a parent?!). Maybe my greatest hope is true: stories, art, music...they all transcend our understanding. And man, what a relief that is, to know that something more than us carries on. 

Yes. Stories, thoughts, ideas...they're so worthwhile. 

Fly high, StarMan. Thank you for your beauty.