immensurable
immeasurable.
*****************************
The stars filled the view from the window. Countless numbers of them, all immeasurable distances away. And yet, to the occupants of the small ship, they seemed like a vast tapestry printed on the universe.
“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that view.” Hank said in a hushed voice.
“Hm? View of what?” Chris replied, much louder than his coworker.
“The stars.” Hank said with a nod out the window.
Chris drifted over to look at the grand vista spreading out in all directions. He shrugged and headed back to work.
“We’ve seen the stars before.” He said. “It’s no different than any other time.”
“You say that like it’s not the single greatest view in existence. I mean, think about it. We’re the only people who will see this exact view. From anywhere else, and they’ll be different. Some stars will be visible, others won’t. And even the ones that are visible will be in different positions. Think about it, Chris. Think about all the different beings out there, looking up at the sky and seeing the stars. The same stars we’re seeing now, but from entirely different views. And this one? This one right here and now? This one’s all ours. Our unique sky.”
Chris let out a non-committal grunt. Hank finally took his eyes off the stars to glare at Chris.
“You could show some kind of emotion, you know.”
“I am showing emotion. Indifference is an emotion, regardless of what the experts say. I just don’t see what’s so great about a bunch of burning gas balls. Gas balls that are so far away that they have no impact on our daily lives.”
“You can be a real stick in the mud, can’t you?”
“I just prefer to keep my mind where it matters, that’s all.”
“Maybe you could try loosening up and appreciating the world around us. I mean, come on, man. Look where we are. We’re in space, seeing things no other human has ever seen before, and likely never will see again. You can’t look out there and tell me it doesn’t stir something inside of you.”
“Right now, I’m mostly feeling annoyance because you won’t let me work in peace. Oh, by the way, you should really be doing your job right now instead of stargazing.”
“Meh. That stuff can wait. It’ll all be there when I get to it.”
It helped that their employer was several light years away. Hank figured he could afford to relax every now and then. It was one of the many benefits of deep space exploration missions. Of course, he would do his job eventually. He just did not see the need to stress out about it and make it his entire reason for being there.
“Putting things off will just make it easier for it to not get done. Better to do the work when it comes up.” Chris said. “If you spend all your time trying to pick out new constellations, nothing will ever get done.”
“I am not making new constellations.” Hank paused for a moment. “Well, not right now I’m not. Maybe later.”
**************************
Not really my best work, is it. I probably should've thought about it a bit more beforehand, but oh well.
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