August Calendars Have Landed

One of my favourite nights of the year happens in August. 

We stay up late. We turn off all the lights in the cottage and go outside and lie on our backs on blankets on the deck. The air is crisp, still warm from the day, but with a hint of fall creeping in. The mosquitoes are gone (thank you!). We chat quietly while watching the sky for one of the best shows of the year. 

The Perseid Meteor shower is one of those amazing gifts of nature. Watching it makes you feel puny and at the same time part of the immensity of everything. The shower lasts from Mid-July to mid-August, but it peaks around August 12 this year. If you get a clear night, and you’re willing to stay up (or wake up) to watch the sky between midnight and dawn, you’re treated to a spectacular show of streaks of light and colour and sometimes even sound. This stunning display is caused by comet dust burning up in the atmosphere, but that explanation seems much too ho-hum for such a stunning display of shooting stars.

This month’s wallpaper and printable download is my interpretation of this night of shooting stars.