As a child, my mother told me I was always fascinated by stars in the sky even before I could walk or had the words to describe what I was seeing.
I remember how she woke my brother and me up before dawn to get us dressed so that she could go to work and drop us off at our grandmother’s house.
I paid close attention to the sky on those dark, early mornings. I was in awe of how the constellations seemed to move across the sky with each passing day. After school, each evening, as the sky grew dark again, I spent hours in my grandmother’s backyard with my “Stars and Planets” book, gazing up, identifying celestial objects, and tracking their path through the sky.
Later in school, my friend and I brought astronomy books to class to pour over the beautiful pictures. My favorite astronomy books displayed maps of foreign moons formulated using images from the Voyager probes.
Those maps helped spark a new idea. The idea was simple. What if the moons had astronomical symbols like the planets? Every planet has symbols, so why not their moons? I spent weeks meticulously creating symbols that told the story of each moon in our Solar System. The Solar Republic was born.
Our childhood is when our minds are the purest and most innocent. We don’t have the burden of learned fears and prejudices. We are free to explore and accept the world with no conditions. Those moments are when our eyes are full of wonder, intrigue, and fascination.
My journey, like all journeys, began with one step. Creating The Solar Republic was the first step in my life’s purpose of bringing humankind closer to true space exploration.
Whatever your childhood dream is, I hope my experience inspires you to remember, cultivate, and fulfill it. This hobby of watching the stars, planets, and moons is slightly different from that of an amateur astronomer. I love astronomy, but I’m a man of action. Space exploration is our future. However, space exploration is not only about exploring space.
Exploring the world beyond our atmosphere is about becoming better humans, reaching our potential, and understanding ourselves and the universe surrounding us.
It’s about a journey, a journey into the unknown, doing something we have never done before, and becoming something we have never been before. It’s about living up to our potential as human beings on this planet. You may not share my love for stars, planets, and moons, but you love something.
You’re passionate about something, even if you don’t know what that thing is yet. Find that thing and do it. Howard Thurman, one of the critical mentors to Martin Luther King, once said: “Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive and do it. Because what the world needs are people who have come alive.”
We are going to need more dreamers who can see what can’t be seen, and we are going to need more doers who are willing to do what hasn’t been done. This next stage of human evolution will be spearheaded by those who appreciate the fine arts and the beauty of a well-balanced mathematical equation.
We will need individuals who embrace the competitive spirit and desire to be great but live and walk in love, empathy, and charity.
To that end, everything produced, directed, or created by the Solar Republic embodies our journey on the path to becoming better humans and, eventually, the path to space.
Love of Space and space exploration? Check the links below.
- The Solar Republic Website — Fresh perspectives on space exploration and astronomy. We strive to bring out the cool side of space through fun games, education, insights, and advocacy.
- The Solar Republic Blog — A publication dedicated to all things astronomy and the exploration of space. We are dedicated to expanding your knowledge of astronomy, stargazing, our solar system, and space exploration.
- The Solar Republic Store — features the card game and other space-related merchandise such as cool posters, mugs, and athletic gear.
- The Solar Republic Card Game — The Solar Republic Card game is a game based on the Sun, planets, and moons of our Solar System. These celestial bodies are represented as astronomical symbols on each card within a deck with many similarities to the standard 52-card deck of playing cards.
- The Solar Republic Facebook Page
- The Solar Republic Instagram Page