As my 40th birthday approaches, I have reached a point that most people consider "middle-age". Age has never really been a concern for me. Every day is a gift, and my life is lived in moments... each of which I consider miraculous.
I feel young, and am beginning my life many ways. I'm getting married this year to an amazing woman & life partner. I've started 2 businesses, and have interesting opportunities opening up for me as I type this post. My main career, at this point, is being a freelance graphic designer as Paul Micarelli Design. Also, my custom portrait & photo booth business Fantasy Photos is also going to be gearing up for festivals and events during the warmer months.
There are many things to be thankful for, and just being alive is a blessing. This adventure in consciousness has been an amazing experience already, & I plan on enjoying it for many years to come.
If I feel like I'm getting too wrapped up in the details and issues of life, I step back & take the cosmic perspective on things.
Recently I went with my fiancée to the Edelman Planetarium at Rowan University, my alma mater. The main show was an animated exploration of "Mayan Archaeoastronomy". It illustrated how the culture of the Maya in ancient Mexico created architecture that was related to the heavenly bodies.
Before the show, there was a nice presentation about the stars and constellations visible in the night sky at our location. As the projector zoomed in and out of different stellar areas, I was reminded of the unimaginable vastness of The Universe.
Then, I saw this high-resolution image online of the Andromeda Galaxy (at the top of the post). This insanely detailed composite photo further illustrated the seemingly infinite fractal scales of the cosmos. The picture was taken by the Hubble Space Telescope last year.
NASA:
This galaxy, that is relatively huge & full of billions of stars, is just one of trillions (?) of other galaxies! HERE is a zoomable version, and you can see that as you zoom into any tiny section of the galaxy, it is literally filled with stars to the point where it looks like visual static.
It is truly humbling & mind-boggling to consider our place in this sea of light and energy that manifests in so many forms. Although my four decades have been like a flash in the cosmic scale of time, and my presence is a speck in the endless depths of space, I have cherished it & lived to the best of my ability.
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