Amidst the turmoil and stress of the last few weeks in the country and my personal life, I took a moment to try remembering things that make me happy.

As a child I used to stare at the night sky, attempting to draw shapes from the stars (disclaimer: I am not, and never was an artist. I was the kid who didn’t like to color and silently freaked out about other kids coloring outside the lines)

Inspired, my mother bought astronomy books for me, forever damning a part of me a nerd (or geek, if you prefer)

I loved the science, the stories created by ancient societies to explain the world, and thanks to H. A. Rey, on a clear night I can always find the North Star.

Fast forward, I succumbed to the same pitfalls of feminine puberty that so many girls do. Boys, “everyone’s boobs are bigger than mine” and “what do you mean EVERY month, this is normal?!” and other self degradations. Suddenly, science was no longer a thing that mattered.

Years later Neil deGrasse Tyson came into my life.

Where I saw him first is fuzzy. Maybe The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, maybe the “Pluto isn’t a planet” debacle, maybe I stumbled across Star Talk, the podcast he hosts with notable figures to talk science.

I follow his work with relish. His passion for science and for teaching is infectious.  Everything he does is funny and informative and makes it safe to nerd out