The sky is falling!!!

So for those of you who don't know, the annual Perseid meteor shower peaked last night and has been going on for several days. I love this time of the year .... when I was a little kid I loved to wish on shooting stars and during August I made about 100 wishes all within the span of a few hours when the Perseids were in full swing, and I thought for sure that with all those wishes, there was no way that Santa wouldn't deliver me a pony that Christmas. It never happened, even when Hale-Bopp came through! No harm in trying ....

So anyway, I drove out of Athens the other night after I got off work at midnight and ended up halfway between Jackson and Athens, where the city lights couldn't interfere with my view of the sky. I spread a blanket out on county road 43a (praying that I would hear cars coming long before I saw them) and let the dogs run around in the grass. Without the city lights around, there were millions and millions of stars. It was breathtaking. It reminded me of when I went to Haiti and laid on the roof of the missionary compound and looked at the stars above a country mostly powered by small cooking fires. You wouldn't think it unless you've seen an unobstructed view of the night sky in a 3rd world country, but the US is so lit up with electric lights and car headlamps that our view of the sky is seriously handicapped. Out on county road 43a, I felt some of the same awe and wonder I'd felt in Pierre Payen, Haiti.

The meteors were great ... I only stayed out there for a little while, but it was so worth the drive. As I was laying on the still-warm asphalt enjoying the light show, I heard the dogs sniffing around in the grass. Suddenly, Copper started alarm barking, spun around, ran back to me, and stood on the corner of my blanket, growling, woofing, and stiff as a board. Riley ran to the edge of the road facing the woods and barked a few warning barks, and then assumed the fiercest posture I've ever seen him take. He growled a deep, chesty growl that seemed unnatural coming from a dog less than 100 pounds, and his 4-inch stub was sticking straight out and quivering. The hair was raised around his neck, his chest was out, and his back legs were quivering, ready for action. Everything about the dogs was alert and aggressive, so I quietly picked up my blanket, tossed it in the open car window, and called the dogs. Copper jumped into the car immediately and started whining, but Riley stood at the edge of the road, completely "in the zone" of his guarding instincts. He was still growling and every now and then would take a few purposeful steps forward, and within a few minutes I heard something big rustle back into the woods.

I, of course, had freaked myself out enough that I had quietly climbed into the car with the windows open to wait for Riley to finish the job he'd assigned himself. As soon as he heard whatever it was retreat into the woods, his hair went down, his stance relaxed, and he stood for a few seconds to assure himself that he'd scared off whatever was interrupting our star-gazing, and he turned around and trotted back to the car, looking over his shoulder every couple of strides.

After he jumped in the car, I left ... but not after feeling eternally grateful to God for creating an infinitely wide, beautiful, amazing universe with meteors and crickets and peeper frogs, but also for dogs that now make me feel EXTREMELY safe in it. I'd never seen Riley guard like a junkyard dog before, and it's somewhat comforting ... I would definitely not want to be on the other end of his glowing yellow eyes and snarling teeth after seeing him like that. Yikes!! He looked like he was auditioning for Cujo.

So anyway ... if you didn't know about the Perseids, I'd encourage you to go out tonight after 11 ... last night was the peak, but they were awesome several days ago and will probably be visible for at least a few more.