For my husband

Long ago, before light and dark became form and function, the universe was dense and lonely. It existed in an aimless litany of nothingness. Eons would pass as quickly as minutes. The universe existed, but it was not alive. Without cause or reason, a small blue orb began to flicker into being. As it was unprecedented, the universe had no law to govern how it should react to such and event. So it didn’t react at all. It watched and it waited. Over time (eons or minutes, who can say?) the tiny blue orb began to grow. As its brilliance intensified, everything its glow touched became alive and new. Everything it touched was brilliant and beautiful. The universe watched as this spark ignited an ancient existence into life.

As this light grew, other sparks ignited, but none as brilliant as the first, the sun. Drawn to its life-giving force, planets began to circle the sun. The closer the planets circled the sun the more dramatic the color on the planet’s face. The light was beautiful. Yet the universe noted a strange phenomenon. As the light’s intensity grew so, too, did the shadows - the...