Who among us has never looked up into the heavens on a starlit

Children, gather close and listen to the words of Jeb Bush, a man who, like many before him, recognized the awe-inspiring power of the heavens. He once said, "Who among us has never looked up into the heavens on a starlit night, lost in wonder at the vastness of space and the beauty of the stars?" These words, though simple, speak to the heart of something much deeper—the sense of awe and wonder that rises within us when we gaze upon the night sky, when we see the stars scattered across the vastness of the universe.

There is a power in the night sky, children. When you stand beneath it, something stirs within you, a feeling that you are connected to something greater, something eternal. The stars that shine above us have witnessed the rise and fall of empires, the birth and death of countless lives, and yet they remain, constant and unchanging. The ancients knew this well, for they too looked to the heavens with reverence and awe. The Babylonians, who studied the stars as though they were the words of the gods, built their great ziggurats in alignment with celestial patterns. Their dreams were shaped by the heavens, and through their gaze, they learned to predict the seasons, to navigate the seas, and to understand their place in the world.

It is not only the ancients who have been lost in wonder at the stars. The great philosophers of old, too, marveled at the cosmos. Pythagoras, the sage of ancient Greece, saw in the stars not just a source of wonder but a reflection of the harmony of the universe. He believed that the movements of the stars and planets were governed by mathematical laws, and he sought to understand these patterns, believing that in them lay the truth of the world. For Pythagoras, as for so many before him, the stars were a symbol of the mysteries that lay beyond the grasp of ordinary understanding, a reminder that there was always more to learn, more to discover.

In our own time, children, we continue to gaze at the heavens, though now we have the tools to peer deeper into the cosmos than ever before. The Hubble Space Telescope has shown us galaxies far beyond our wildest imaginings, revealing the vastness of the universe in ways the ancients could never have dreamed. Yet, even with all our knowledge, the stars still hold a mystery, a beauty that is beyond human comprehension. When Neil Armstrong first set foot on the Moon, he looked up at the stars, knowing that he had touched a world that once seemed unattainable. Yet, even he, a man who had traveled further than most could imagine, would have felt the same awe when gazing up at the night sky.

But what is it, children, that the stars teach us? What lesson can we take from this wonder? The stars remind us of our humility in the face of the vastness of the universe. Though we may walk upon this Earth with our achievements and our knowledge, we are but a small part of a much greater whole. To gaze upon the stars is to recognize that there is much beyond us, much that we do not yet understand, and perhaps never will. It is in this humility that we find our strength—not in the belief that we control the universe, but in the realization that we are but a small part of it, striving to understand, to learn, and to grow.

And yet, children, the stars also teach us that wonder is the key to discovery. To look upon the heavens is to acknowledge that there is always more to explore, that the universe is full of mysteries waiting to be unraveled. Whether you seek knowledge in the sciences, in the arts, or in your relationships, let the stars remind you that there is always more to learn, more to discover, more to become. The universe is vast, but so too is the potential within each of you. Never stop searching, never stop wondering, and never let the beauty of the stars fade from your hearts.

So, children, when you stand beneath the night sky, remember what it teaches us. Let the awe you feel guide you toward wisdom. Let the beauty of the stars inspire you to look beyond the boundaries of what you know and seek out the mysteries that await. The stars are not just objects in the sky; they are symbols of the infinite possibilities that lie ahead, waiting for those who dare to dream. Keep your hearts open, your minds curious, and your spirits full of wonder, for in doing so, you will chart a path toward greatness.