Sometimes we get broken. We heal, pick ourselves up, and move on. But at some point, some people are shattered. Pushed to the point where they exceed their limits so far, the pieces that are left are irreparable. Pushed so far… so far that the person that was once there dies, and won’t come back.
However, even though there seems to be no recovery, nothing left of the person, there is still one choice left. Regardless of the fact that the person that was is gone, and the person that’s left is completely different, the person that was still gets one last say, before the die completely.
I am a massive astrophysics nerd, particularly stellar astrophysics. The study of stars. Stars are the most powerful force in the universe in my opinion. Almost every element in the universe is formed from the death of a star.
Stars are birthed when a nebula, a collection of gasses within a galaxy that form a cloud, slowly begins to collapse in on itself from it’s own gravity. This takes millions, if not, billions of years for this to happen.
However, once the density of the gasses becomes so intense, the temperature rises exponentially, and soon, the stellar “spark”, nuclear fusion, ignites, and a star is born.
Now stars fuse atoms together their entire lives. This fusion releases tremendous energy. In the form of heat, and in the form of light. Every time two hydrogen atoms collide, a portion of mass is lost and sent out into the universe as a photon. This is what sunlight is.
Now, eventually the star begins to exhaust its supply of hydrogen, now fused to helium, the star begins to fuse helium, then the next element, and then the next.
Eventually, the star is pushed to the point where it has nothing left to give, nothing left to fuse to survive, and so it expands exponentially, trying to survive, fighting with everything in it’s power, destroying everything trying to hold it down.
However this is unsustainable, and eventually the star reaches it’s breaking point. And it dies. When a star dies it is explosive, shattering everything, and consuming everything that was.
What is curious about this process of the death of a star, is that this “shattering” is not the end. The original star still has influence on what becomes of it’s pieces.
There are two things a dying star can become: a black hole, the most destructive thing known to exist in the entire universe, devouring, consuming, and killing everything in its path, or a supernova, one of the most beautiful, powerful, and respected things in the entire universe. One of the fascinating things about supernovae, is that they produce a nebula. A nebula from which a star can be born.
So, to tie this together, for those of us who reach the point of being shattered, to the point that the person that was dies, we still have one final choice. Do we become a black hole, destroying everyone who cares about and loves us? Or do we become a supernova, not the same, but stronger, more powerful, casting light from our ashes, and building a legacy for the people we care about?
I don’t know about you, but I have had the privilege of being loved by a supernova. She is my inspiration, she is my muse. Yesterday, I was shattered, yesterday, who I was died. But as the final card I play, I choose to become a supernova. I love you Miki. Thank you for showing me how to be a supernova.