Sorry, I stole this title from CathyA and changed it just a mite.

Last night about 10:00 P.M., I was sitting here reading, just me and the cats, settling down for the night when all at once everything went totally quiet and totally dark. A blackout! There being no storms, no snow, I wasn't expecting this and wasn't prepared, but I did remember where a lighter for the candles was and fumbled my way to the kitchen to get it. After getting a candle lit I could see my way to go to the bedroom and find a flashlight. Now I am armed with weapons of light! So, then I looked out my window to see if it looked like the whole neighborhood was dark and that is when I saw the most beautiful sight! The stars were shinning so bright, the old adage about looking like diamonds strewn across a piece of black velvet was how they looked.

I wanted to go outside so badly to see more, but I have an alarm system that was on and I didn't know how it would respond if I opened the door. I was afraid there wouldn't be a way I could turn it off since the pad was dark except for a small light that just showed it had back up power I guess. So, no going outside. But, I did wander from room to room looking out all the windows, craning my neck to see up as much as I could, and finally just sitting down by an open window to enjoy the view.

The power outage, I learned later, was county wide and reached into parts of other counties. It only lasted about 45 minutes, but oh the beautiful skies I got to enjoy for those minutes. That is why I put it here in Simple Spirituality, such a gift of beauty. I live in a small town, but our streetlights dim the night skies so much that I had forgotten how beautiful it could be. I am thankful that it was a nice clear, crisp night with no cloud cover. All in all, it was just a
beautiful sight and I am so glad I didn't miss it.