Canis Major
It’s hot, and I’m loving it for now! The East Coast winter was unusually cold as winter’s grip held on through March and April tighter than a toddler to his toy. My Alabama bones couldn’t shake the chill to the point I was dreaming of sun scorched red dirt roads and hay fields. Finally, summer has crept in inconspicuously yet suddenly from the hemisphere below. It’s not quite the dog days of summer, but they’ll be here before we know it.
I was enjoying a novel recently that referenced the term dog-days in the following way: To save my soul, I couldn’t help laughing when I zid en (seen in), though all the time I was hot as dog-days. The novel is set in a country that isn’t known for lazy dogs. That’s what I’ve always invoked when I heard the phrase. I picture those lazy dogs lying on the porch in the summer heat. I had to see what I could discover.
The dog days of summer have nothing to do with dogs. All this time I’ve been thinking about summer and K-9’s all wrong. The term dog-days goes all the way back to the Roman Empire, when they referred to the hottest period of the year as dies caniculares (days of dog). During the hottest summer days, the Sirius star reappears on the eastern horizon just before dawn in a celestial phenomenon known as heliacal rising. Sirius is the brightest star within the constellation Canis Major (Greater Dog). These hot days eventually took on the name dog-days.
The dog days of summer technically begin on the 40th day after the summer solstice. The solstice will happen on June 21st, putting the start of our dog days on July 31st. If we’re up for an early sunrise, we can observe this heliacal rising that still occurs as it did in the Roman Empire and even before that. When I consider God’s celestial orchestration, I can’t help but conclude the awesomeness of our God.
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies declare the works of your hands. Psalm 19:1
Yes indeed!
As we emerge from the warmth of our living rooms into the warmth of God’s sun, I hope we’ll approach this season with fresh wonder of God’s world. Just imagine all that God has placed around us to remind us of His glory.
Recently, I took a stroll holding a young child. I was captivated by the bewilderment in his eyes. The blanket of green leaves and white clouds above was sending his mind into overdrive. I hope I never lose that sense of bewilderment about the world around me.
The world can be a cruel and stressful place, but God winks back at us in the wonder of His creation. When I sit out by the beach or walk through dense woods, my heart rate drops and the weight of this world begins to wane. I believe it comes from a renewed perspective that, small as I am, I am enveloped in the hands of a compassionate God who lavishes me with His mighty works to enjoy. The God who orchestrates heliacal rises knows me by name and calls me into the world to wonder. His glory is the gift to delight in, and His glory shines like the stars.