a grand scale

Often when I start to feel overwhelmed, I like to think about how small a human being is in the grand scheme of things. Thinking of this adds some perspective — it helps me remember that whatever issue I may be facing is less than a speck of sand to the universe, and that in the long run it will wash away just as quickly and easily. I found these two photos and thought they were too breathtaking to keep to myself:

In the upper right corner of the image, the Small Magellanic Cloud is a nearby dwarf galaxy to our own Milky Way. It is visible in the Southern Hemisphere, and is roughly 210,000 light-years away. (Nasa)

Grains of sand up-close (magnification 95x), from Plum Island Mass. (Discover)

Don't think I'll ever look at the night sky or the beach quite the same way again.

"To see a world in a grain of sand // And a heaven in a wild flower // Hold infinity in the palm of your hand // And eternity in an hour." -William Blake