Southern Cross

Perhaps one more poem about some special stars. We’ve already established that I love to gaze up at the heavens, and often find some meaning there. I have a long relationship with Polaris, the North Star, which features prominently in the sky … and in my thoughts. In the northern hemisphere it’s the pole star, remaining roughly in the same position while the Big Dipper, Cassiopeia and the rest of the constellations dance slowly around it. For this reason, it’s been a friend to navigators for thousands of years. And it just happens to be the first thing I see when I walk out my front door in the evening, a reliable companion in a seemingly ever-changing world.

When we began traveling to visit our daughter’s family in New Zealand some years ago we had to leave the North Star behind because it’s only visible from the northern hemisphere. Yet we were also introduced to the Southern Cross, which is only visible in the southern hemisphere and features prominently in the culture there. It even graces the flag of New Zealand. I Immediately struck up a friendship with this new constellation, and as a sailor and navigator it had a particular meaning for me as well. Throughout my life I’d frequently relied upon the North Star to find my way or get my bearings. However, it was clear that I needed to point my daughter towards the appropriate celestial companion to take her own bearings on. She has her own family and her own life, and her own broad expanse of sky … and she needed different stars to point the way to her chosen home.

Back here in north America, with Polaris looking over my shoulder, I’m unable to view the Southern Cross. Yet, I know where to find it. Broad oceans may separate us, but the Southern Cross is etched indelibly upon my heart and I know it’s watching over those whom I hold so dear.

Southern Cross

As I walk out of my front door

Each night I’m greeted by

My old friend, the North Star

Hanging ever in the sky

But down under it is different

My North Star is out of view

So I must trust the Southern Cross

To keep watch each night on you

You can find it in the south

To the left of your driveway

And it can be a beacon for you

When you lose the light of day

Even though the Southern Cross

Dwells below where I can see

It will always be there for you

And I hope you’ll think of me

Our horizons may be different

And six thousand miles and more

Of empty blue Pacific

May separate our shores

But you are always on my mind

And we won’t feel far apart

If you look up at the Southern Cross

And know I hold you in my heart

             By Frank Carpenter ©

True North

We live in a complicated world, a world with so many options and even more ways to reach them. However, in such a world, one can easily lose his or her way. Oh, folks are quick to offer directions. The shelves of local bookstores swell with “self help” books. Countless pundits spout their various opinions from every known media, but even those of us who think they know where they are, and where they are heading, often feel like we’re aiming at moving targets. Let us take a lesson from fundamental navigation. In modern times, we use a compass to find our way upon the sea or in the wilderness. A compass simply works by pointing north, thereby offering us a consistent reference point from which to choose our course. The ancients used the stars, which could be counted upon to occupy certain quadrants of the sky during various times of the night or year. While those heavenly bodies all appear to move across the sky, one star, Polaris, appears to remain stationary. We know it as the North Star, and if we are in the northern hemisphere it will always be found in the same place because it is located over the earth’s axis and, therefore, does not “spin” like the rest of its celestial counterparts. Polaris is a consistent beacon, resolutely anchored, as it were, in the northern sky.

I find my analogy today in the way of faith in Jesus Christ. There are countless “stars” on the horizon of human existence and, for various reasons, folks seem to pick them at random to chase after. Consequently, many people seem to have lost their way in life because they have discovered nothing reliable to steer by. They need a true north. I have found that Jesus, like Polaris, is just such a beacon. With the bible as a chart and Jesus as our true north we can find our way across the tempestuous oceans of life without running aground. When you look into the night time sky you can always find Polaris right up there between the Big Dipper and Cassiopeia. All the other constellations are restless wanderers, but the North Star remains true. If you have grown weary of wandering or have otherwise lost your way, search for Jesus in the darkness of your life and He can help to guide you. He is the only true north.

Polaris
All the constellations have
Their seasons and their places
Each dances through the heavens
In the gentle arc it traces
Restless nomads are the stars
Which never tarry long
As they spiral ever onward
Amidst the great celestial throng
They might visit for an evening
Or a month upon their way
Yet, in time, they always move along
Without the will to stay
But there is one which never waivers
One star, never out of place
A faint, but steady beacon
In the vast array of space
I am speaking of Polaris
The star which rules the northern skies
The rest meander on their journey
Yet, Polaris never lies
We know it as the North Star
Sometimes, no other star will do
When we need a light to guide us
Polaris shines forever true
By Frank Carpenter