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| Credit: NASA |
Called "Earthrise", this photo was taken by astronaut William Anders during the 8th Apollo mission, the first manned mission to the moon in 1968.
From there, our Earth looks like a small marble hanging in emptiness, its top illuminated by the life-giving sun and the bottom submerged in total darkness. From the edge of the solar system, earth is nothing but a "pale blue dot" against the vastness of space.
When I look at this photo, all I can think about is how minuscule humankind is - 6,000 years of civilisation is a mere blink of the eye in space terms; how fragile our home is - shielded by a thin blue atmosphere that supplies the air we breathe every day; and yet how lucky we are that life happened on this planet! (I do believe we're not the only ones but all the coincidences that take for a planet to be habitable?!?!)
It's a truly humbling reminder of how small and special we are. Suddenly, human problems seem minute and silly.
When life gets me down, I turn to the sky for peace and comfort. The universe puts things in perspective for me. It's sheer scale humbles me and keeps my silly problems away. It makes me ponder about our existence and reminds me to appreciate and cherish. It gives me a sense of calmness and helps me chase away the clouds.
I guess that's why ;)
