How strange it was, I thought, that when the tiny though thousandfold beauties of the Earth disappeared and the immeasurable beauty of outer space rose in the distant quiet splendor of light, man and the greatest number of other creatures were supposed to be asleep! Was it because we were only permitted to catch a fleeting glimpse of those great bodies and then only in the mysterious time of a dream world, those great bodies about which man had only the slightest knowledge but perhaps one day would be permitted to examine more closely? Or was it permitted for the great majority of people to gaze at the starry firmament only in brief, sleepless moments so that the splendor wouldn't become mundane, so that the greatness wouldn't be diminished?

~ Adalbert Stifter

Adalbert Stifter Astronomy Nature Night Sky Science Space Stars Wonder

With my naked eye, on nights the moon climbs slowly, sometimes so dusted with rust and rose, brown, and gold tones that it nearly drips earth colors and seems intimately braided with Earth, it feels close, part of this world, a friend. But through the telescope, the moon seems- ironically- farther away…the gray-white moon in a sea of black, its surface in crisp relief, brighter than ever before. I am struck too, by the scene’s absolute silence.

~ Paul Bogard

Paul Bogard Astronomy Beauty Moon Night Sky Stars

When I lie back and close my eyes, this farthest lip of beach right next to the end of the ocean feels like being up close to an enormous breathing being, the bass drum surf thump reverberating through the sand. Living out here with no lights, alone, you would indeed become sensitive to seasons, rhythms, weather, sounds- right up next to the sea, right up under the sky, like lying close to a lover’s skin to hear blood and breath and heartbeat.

~ Paul Bogard

Paul Bogard Infinity Nature Night Sky Ocean Sensuality Stargazing Stars Wonder

A sunset is the sun’s fiery kiss to the night.

~ Crystal Woods

Crystal Woods Dusk Fiery Kiss Night Sky Sundowno Sunset Sunsets Word Junkies

The trouble with space is, there's so much of it.An ocean of blackness without any shore.A neverending nothing.And here, all alone in the million billion miles of midnight, is one solitary moving speck. A fragile parcel filled with sleeping people and their dreams.

~ Philip Reeve

Philip Reeve Alone Dreams Night Sky Space

The sky grew darker, painted blue on blue, one stroke at a time, into deeper and deeper shades of night.

~ Haruki Murakami

Haruki Murakami Blue Night Night Sky Painted Sky Strokes

After that there was silence for a while, only the sound of the shovel biting into the earth and the hissing splatter of the loose dirt.They stood him up, his back to the well.In the dark, desperate sky, just above the scalloped line the treetops made, three stars formed a pleading little constellation. No one looked at them, no one cared. This was the time for death, not the time for mercy. (The Number's Up)

~ Cornell Woolrich

Cornell Woolrich Constellation Death Night Night Sky Sky

Black met black on the distant horizon, the stars alone distinguishing sky from lake. On the sand below, Silver Beach glittered at the water's edge while on the north side of the river the lighthouse's beacon signaled safe harbor.

~ Erin Farwell

Erin Farwell Lake Lighthouse Night Sky Water

i witness the birth of the moon and her servants walking the night sky pulling us into their wake

~ A.p. Sweet

A.p. Sweet Birth Moon Night Sky

The moon is your reminder that God is never-changing, and you can always depend on Him to hear your prayers.

~ Tessa Emily Hall

Tessa Emily Hall Inspirational Inspirational Quotes Moon Night Sky

...the religion of the heart is as intimate as a wish breathed to the night sky...

~ John Geddes

John Geddes Heart Intimacy Night Sky Poetry Religion