Planets, Stars and Airs of Space

This picture is looking southwest, toward Mexico, from our motor home. Tonight was a perfect night for sitting outside beside a campfire. You can see the firepit, slightly to the left center of the picture. The wooden structure on the far left is a picnic shelter. The wind was very light, out of the southeast, and blew the smoke away from us. We sat around the fire and watched the western sky turn pink and orange, and as the darkness deepened, the stars began to show. In Seminole Canyon, there is little light pollution, and the Milky Way was visible from southwest to northeast. Also, this is one of the few places we've been where the Little Dipper is visible. As I watched the fire and listened to the crickets and tree frogs, I thought of the ancient peoples who lived in the canyons here and wondered if they, too, saw the beauty in their surroundings and appreciated the velvet black heavens with twinkling stars and planets. They were probably hungry and preoccupied with obtaining enough food and water to keep body and soul together, though.
The Taurid meteor shower is supposed to happen soon, and I did see one bright shooting star as we were sitting there. However, soon the eastern sky began to glow like it was on fire, and the slightly lopsided bright orange moon began to rise. Oh well, the fire was dying and we headed for the warmth of our home.
I was reminded of being in high school, singing a song by J. S. Bach, called "Planets, Stars, and Airs of Space". I think I can still remember all the words. Isn't it odd that we can remember songs we learned 50 years ago but can't remember the name of someone we met five minutes ago!
It's been a nice couple of days, as we were off duty and able to relax. Tomorrow, it's back to work!