A Wish from the Stars

Being a star is quite complicated.

You come into existence with the help of swirling dust and gas, mixing and compressing together into a chaotic jumble, the nebula acting as some sort of mother in a sense, a mother you will not ever get to meet because now, you are her.

You then open your eyes to see a vast space that is purely a void, filled with many others just like you. Some are born small, some are born large, some burn brighter, and some are duller.

But most importantly, they are all stars.

Each one is a bit different from the rest, with different sunspots and temperatures, some with distinct colors and luminosity. Some are close together and some are millions, upon millions of miles apart. Some are surrounded by small floating rocks and balls of gas given the named planets, and some sit alone in the middle of various galaxies. Some are old, some are new, and some are just starting to reach the middle of their lives.

But once again you realize they are just like you.

Stars.

Stars that will one day burn out or grow much too big. They could fizzle away without much impact, or they could go out with a big bang filled with pent-up emotion of growing much too large over the past millennium. Stars that will one day just stop shining around the dome above Earth, the same one the small beings paroling the rock’s surface call the sky. Stars could become a vacuum of endless space and pressure, such as black holes, which form from them collapsing on themselves. Years of all the stress it endured for not being the brightest in the sky for so long.

What is so strange is that stars have a purpose. They are supposed to be the nightlight keeping the dark and endless void known as “Space” from becoming too cold. They are supposed to be the center of galaxies, the main selling point of the universe, one of the principle factors relating to existence.

Yet they still yearn for more.

Despite already being so important, despite being the light in the darkness, there is still one thing they yearn for, over anything else.

They want to be remembered.

Stars know that one day they will be forgotten, one day they will realize that perhaps they did not burn brightly enough, perhaps they could have left with an even more extravagant bang.

But that would not be enough.

There are just too many of them in the night sky, too many to count or name. Trillions upon trillions of them fill up the dark void, and they are accompanied by other objects that compete with them head and nail for the recognition they deserve.

Yes, Space may be a void, but somehow it has so many inhabitants that it is only reasonable that not all of them would get a chance to be remembered.

Space is a void that surely is not empty.

So, the Stars have a dream, more so a wish, to be more precise.

A wish similar to how the small beings on the rocky planet called “Earth,” located near a special star named the Sun, make up the vast number of stars in their sight.

A wish made to humans, asking for a favor after granting so many of the little beings’ wishes for so long.

They wish for humans to be able to name each one of them, just as how they named the Sun so many years ago.

They wish for humans to be able to map out their locations in the vast space, be able to tell each of them apart, and be able to recognize just how brightly each of them glow and aid humans.

They wish that humans remember the Stars, just as how the Stars remember the humans.

Stars have been with humankind since the beginning, giving them guidance when they needed it. They have been the shining light in the darkness for so long.

So, it is only fair that they should be recognized for all their hard work, making sure that humans would always have a companion in the sky no matter what.

They have always made sure to listen to their wishes, burn brightly to display their excellence for their amusement, and follow them on their paths to succession.

In return, all they ask is to be remembered.

All a star wants is to be remembered, to be appreciated, to be cherished.

They bestow that wish to humans, with the hope that one day that wish can be fulfilled.

They will wait for however long it takes for them all to be recognized, wait through the fall, and upbringing of new civilizations, wait through the advancements humans will make throughout time, and the blunders they make along the road.

They will continue to hold onto that wish to the very end because, at the end of the day, all they want is to be remembered.

Milton M. Somers Middle School, Maryland.
Grade 8th