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By James Gardner

Clark County Public Library

I like the outdoors. 

Really, I do. 

Sorry if I sound defensive, but when I tell people I like the outdoors, some of them follow up with questions like “Do you like camping?” or “What’s your favorite place to hike?” When that happens, I typically look to change the subject, up to and including pretending to fall over in my chair or claim amnesia. 

To clarify, I like the outdoors but I don’t often get to enjoy it like I want to. 

Don’t get me wrong. I walk outside. I’ve even gone on two hour walks around my neighborhood, but the self-conscious side of me, the one who usually critiques my choice of whatever I decide to wear that day, doesn’t really consider it nature because it has sidewalks. Do I really deserve to say that I enjoy nature? When’s the last time I started a fire by rubbing sticks together? Or caught my dinner? Bear Grylls, survivalist extraordinaire, would hang his head in shame before enjoying a dinner of freshly cooked beetles, or whatever survivalists eat.

What if I am not a true nature lover? What if I’m not crunchy enough? Do I need to turn in all the flannel I own? 

I ponder these questions as I realized that Global Sleep Under the Stars day is on August 6th. I have slept under the stars before, and it wasn’t a terrible experience, but it was also at a time where I, and the multiple vertebrae in my back, were younger and more flexible. I could try camping, I suppose. The library has plenty of books on the subject, such as “Advanced Bushcraft: An Expert Field Guide to the Art of Wilderness Survival”(613.69 Cant) and “The Camping Bible: the Essential Guide for Outdoor Enthusiasts”(796.54 Holt), so I could definitely be informed. But it’s the “sleeping” under the stars I have a problem with. Frankly, I like my bed too much to give it up for the hard ground. 

Yet I can’t deny that looking up at the night sky is peaceful. Right now, I live in a city where there isn’t a lot of stars above me that aren’t blocked by streetlights, but I understand the appeal of looking up at the night sky and realizing that you are a small part of a very large universe, a grain of sand on a beach, while at the same time pondering that there are others out there, in California to Connecticut, from Washington State to South Florida, who are also looking up at the night sky. Perhaps they are wondering how many others are looking up at the same night sky, or simply what exists beyond that sky. I may not be willing to camp outside, but I have a chair and a firepit. I can watch the fireflies that seem to fly as high as the stars. I can listen to the sound of cars driving past our street. If I can’t sleep under the stars, then I can at least recline in my backyard. 

I guess it’s okay to savor all the nature I can, no matter where I am. I also hope that people, whether they sleep under the stars on August 6th, spare a moment to look up at the sky and commune with the little bit of nature you have been granted. 

And when you’re not looking up at the sky, you can enjoy these programs: 

• On Tuesday, August 6, at 6 p.m., Classic Sci-Fi  Cinema presents a classic monster movie from 1954. The earliest atomic tests in New Mexico cause common ants to mutate into giant man-eating monsters that threaten civilization.To combat this horror, a police sergeant, an FBI agent, and a father/daughter scientist team join forces. Popcorn and snacks provided! 
• On Wednesday, August 7, at 2 p.m., the Kentucky Picture Show presents a classic psychological thriller from 1962. In Southeast Georgia, Max Cady (Robert Mitchum) is released from prison after serving an eight-year sentence and promptly tracks down Sam Bowden (Gregory Peck), an attorney whom he holds personally responsible for his conviction. Cady stalks not only Bowden, but also Bowden’s wife and daughter. Popcorn and snacks provided! 
• On Sunday, August 11, at 1 p.m., the library is holding its monthly meeting of Winchester Fiver Arts. All fiber arts are welcome, crochet, spinning, needlepoint, embroidery, cross stitch, quilting, weaving, rug hooking, etc. Bring a project to work on. Beginners welcome!
• Also on Sunday, August 11, at 2 p.m., the library presents Silent Reading Together. Join us the second Sunday of each month in a comfy chair behind the reference desk for reading together! Bring a book to read and enjoy companionable silence as we read our individual books together. Drinks and light snacks provided.