Welcome Home, Orion! ~ by Marj Ivancic, Author

Constellation Orion (deposit photos)

With its long nights, cold temperatures, and blustering snows, winter does not have much to recommend it! But one of the most special things about this time of year is the return of Orion the Hunter. The constellation, which boasts two of the top ten brightest stars in the night’s sky (Rigel and Betelgeuse), becomes visible and stays so until around February.

I don’t know why he means so much to me. There’s just something about looking up into the heavens and seeing him. About knowing that people from across the globe and from across the span of time have gazed upon him too.

Isis Temple and Orion Nebula (deposit photos)

If you research Orion, you’ll find origin stories about him from not only the ancient Greeks but from the even more ancient  Sumerians of Mesopotamia as well as the Egyptians. In fact, the Great Pyramid at Giza was architected around two of the stars in Orion’s belt. And on the other side of the world, in South America, the appearance of his belt and sword mark the start of an Aztec ceremony to delay the end of the world. China, Australia, Scandinavia—these cultures also have references to Orion.

How many other things in this world can we say that about? What else has been so universally available and so steadfastly constant over the millennium? 

Galaxy Stars Universe (deposit photos)

To me, in the dark days of winter, Orion stands as a reminder that we are not alone. That though geography and culture and time may separate us, we are connected by a greater force. One that is so fundamental, it is beyond the understanding of Man.

And so, may you ever be humbled by the majesty of the night’s sky. That is my holiday wish for you…

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