Wandering by Starshine

Megan McLaughlin

Having a sense of place doesn’t necessarily mean feeling settled wherever you stand (not all of the time). It’s that settled feeling in your heart that gives you the strength to stand anywhere. It’s the courage found in even the smallest stars as they search for where they belong in the sky. Sometimes, it can be hard to remember where we fit into life’s trailing tapestry of moments—into the winding paths we walk. But grasping for the moments that glow—the ones that make us smile, give us hope, remind us of where we hope those paths might lead—they’re what guide us in the right direction. Those moments are how we muster both the fortitude to settle our roots, and the starry courage to reach our branches into a shadow and light steeped sea above.  If you can find a reason to carry a little starshine wherever you wander—even if it’s the kind eyes of someone you’ll only glimpse once, the laughter of a joke you’ve long forgotten, the melody of a songbird you can’t name—you’ll never truly be lost.