Hello again - it's been a while. Nearly seven years have passed since I've posted to social media on a regular basis. (Some of you probably noticed, this account was managed by my lovely wife, @kaleleaves, during that time.) I think for a while there I wasn't sure how to engage with social media. I knew that I wanted to share stories, moments, thoughts and inspirations, but I had a somewhat dismissive and cynical view of these platforms.
There's a lot of noise to sift through - the opinions, the politics, the advertising and self-promotion. Most of all, it was the realization that we're all putting our best face forward. I wasn't so thrilled by that. It felt disingenuous that only our most attractive angles should be published and syndicated to our friends, family, and followers. But the truth is, I think I was taking things too seriously. I spent too much time wondering whether a particular photo is good enough to post and I was frustrated how I was only able to describe the facts of a particular scene, rather than the thoughts it stirred up. I think now, though, I'm ready to give it another shot. What better way to signify this than a photo of a comet? This is a photo of NEOWISE above Mt. Rainier. It is well known that comets were regarded as omens to ancient people. At times they were portentous, and other times auspicious. Today I'm going to call it a good omen and reflect on the intentions I have for the future here. I hope these posts will enable me to share more thoughts and inspirations with you all on a more regular basis. I can't promise much, but at the very least these will allow some time to reflect on things that have been on my mind, and give a reason to practice writing.
A comet is like a dirty snowball made of ice, rock and dust. As the comet is heated by the sun, the molecules of ice sublimate - they move from a solid phase directly to a gaseous phase - leaving behind the solid particles of dust and rock. This is why a comet has two tails. The first is a bluish column of gaseous ions, swiftly stripped away by the solar wind. The second is a trail of dust particles, also blown by the solar wind, but less so. These dust particles form the brighter tail, which is often seen with a gentle arc. It was thought that comets brought water to earth, but that is still a topic of discussion among astronomers. One thing we're sure of is that comets produce annual meteor showers like the perseids. These occur when the earth passes through a comet's path, gently showered by celestial dust.