blood moon
As I was watching last night’s Blood Moon, my thoughts drifted to my mom, Collene Spencer. Mom had been so excited about the Blood Moons. I believe she was only able to see one of them, but she looked at all my pictures of them. These Blood Moons were special. They all fell on Jewish holidays…two on Passover and two on Sukkot. That hadn’t happened in a very long time…1967 was the exact last time. Prior to that 1948, and 1492 were other times that had happened, in fact. Mom was very excited about these four Blood Moons, because she could feel the significance of them. In fact, it was my mom who pointed them out to me, long before they were due to happen. She had heard about them while watching John Hagee on television. Her excitement got me excited. It became a source of anticipation for both of us. I suppose that is why this one…without her, was a little sad for me. Nevertheless, I watched it with great anticipation…for both of us, as did the rest of the family.
I found myself wishing that she could have been here for this one too. Then, I started wondering, “What would 
the Blood Moon look like from Heaven.” It reminded me that I had seen fireworks once from an airplane, and while they were still fireworks, it just looked different, so what would the Blood Moon look like from Heaven? Could they see it from there? Did they even think about it? In some ways, I found myself hoping that Mom, and Dad too, could see it, because it is a beautiful thing, and I knew that they would really have loved it. It is so hard not to be able to share things like this with my parents. I would love to be able to pick up the phone and tell them to go outside and have a look and such an awesome sight, but there is no phone that can reach them now. Nevertheless, they, and especially my mom, would have loved last nights Blood Moon, because even though the clouds obscured much of the full eclipse, I was able to see most of the second half of the eclipse. It was a beautiful show, just a little bit sad for me.
While I loved watching this the last in a series of four Blood Moons, it was bittersweet too. I was sorry that the Blood Moons were over, because they were just so special. I was sorry they were over because of the 
connection that I felt to my mom because of all our discussions about the four Blood Moons. And I was sorry that they were over, because I believe that God speaks to us through signs in the sky…like the Star of Bethleham…and that made this event so much more amazing.
I suppose that it will not matter to me whether or not Mom and Dad could see the Blood Moon, when I get to Heaven, because by then it will seem very anticlimactic. Heaven and seeing God face to face will be far more important. Nevertheless, for now, we have the moments we have, and while my mother was not here to see it, I know she would be glad that so many of her children did get to see it.
Yesterday, while Bob and I were on a walk, I heard a small plane overhead. Both Bob and I looked up and searched the sky until we found it. It occurred to me that it doesn’t matter if it is a bird, a small plane, a jet, or especially a hot air balloon, we always look up. It’s funny, because we hear cars, kids, dogs, trains, and even music around us all the time, but we don’t always look. We might look if the car or motorcycle is really loud, but just as often, it makes no difference to us. We aren’t really very interested.
I don’t think that it is because the things we see and hear on the ground are any more common than the things we see and hear in the sky are. Maybe we just feel the freedom of the air, when we watch something soaring across the sky. I personally love to fly, and I would love to ride in a hot air balloon too. Birds fascinate me …especially the pigeons that circle the downtown Casper 
area. When I feel like I am tied down with responsibility, all it takes it to sit and watch the birds awhile, and I feel better. The birds lift some of the weight of responsibility and I feel lighter. Now I can’t say for sure that feeling free is the reason that we look up when we hear a noise in the sky, but it could be one reason.
I suppose that if we lived in a big city, I would not think so much about planes in the air, since there are probably far more of them than we get in Casper, Wyoming. Still, I have to wonder if they would get excited about seeing a bunch of hot air balloons over their city, the way we do here. Or maybe it’s just me. I suppose that it is entirely possible that other people don’t look up when a plane, balloon, or bird fly over. I have been known to think a little bit differently about things, so maybe other people don’t give it a second thought. Nevertheless, I love to watch the planes fly overhead, look with wonder when a hot air balloon goes over, and even wonder where the birds are headed when I see them flying above me.
And just in case I didn’t look enough like I live in a dream world, I will tell you that I also look at the clouds. I love to see what pictures God might have painted in the sky with them. The moon and stars are also attention grabbers, because of the beauty they have been given. I like to look for satellites at night, or shooting stars, when the sky isn’t to light. The blood moon that is coming in a couple of days will be the second one this year and I am making plans to be up and watching the sky. Maybe it is just me, but I have a tendency to think that it’s not. I think a lot of people are curious about the things that happen in the sky and in space. I have a feeling that we are a bit like little kids in that way. When we hear a sound in the sky, we always look up.
