Need a bedtime story to read to a 9 year old? Try this one. Not exactly Dr. Suess, but that's where I was aiming.

		You Can't See in the Dark with the Lights On

		      (c)  Kevin Krisciunas, 1994

			   University of Notre Dame
			   Department of Physics
			   Notre Dame, Indiana

1	Our teacher taught us that the Sun is just an average star. 
	It's made entirely of gas and isn't very far.
 	Without its heat and light the Earth would rapidly grow cold 
	And then we'd never go outside again, or so I'm told.

2	The other stars are found at distances so large and vast 
	You might not get there even if you ran extremely fast. 
	For running's not so hard if it's from home plate to first base. 
	If that's the distance to the Sun, it's quite another race 
	To reach the nearest other star - I'll give you all a clue: 
	That would be distance from New York to Timbuktu.

3	Because the stars are very far, in spite of being bright 
	Each one that shines upon us gives us very little light. 
	But stars are sparkly wondrous things you'll want to set your 
	  sights on, 	
	If only you can go someplace they haven't left the lights on. 
	To see them you must find a certain special place to park, 
	Without the Sun or Moon as well - a place where dark is DARK.

4	"To find us such a place," you say - "A place that's really 
	  dark - 	
	Shouldn't be as difficult as teaching cats to bark." 	
	So off we went one evening, 'cross the street to see the stars	 
	But most of what we saw outside were buses, trucks, and cars. 
	The lights in houses, streets, and alleys added to the view. 
	How many stars did we see out there? Maybe one or two.

5	One day my father took us all to see the planetarium.
 	My brother tired on the walk and father had to carry him. 
	Then we went in and marvelled at a modern major miracle - 
	The alien machinery and ceiling hemispherical. 	
	The doors were closed, the lights were dimmed, the show began
	  inside.
	It was a kind of interstellar roller coaster ride.

6	"There's eight and eighty constellations - star groups, 
	  if you please, 	
	Exactly what you'd count on a piano keyboard's keys. 	
	If you practice the piano, you'll play charming melodies. 
	If you know where all the stars are, you can sail the Seven
	  Seas.
	Sailors use the stars as beacons - that's called navigation. 
	And every star there ever was is in a constellation." 	
	
7	And so began the talk while the projector whizzed and whirred. 
	We learned of mythic beasts and things both wondrous and absurd. 
	The stars can have as many names as there are folks that see 
	  'em - 	
	Chinese, Greek, and Arabic.  We need a star museum! 	
	But which of stellar names is weirdest might be hard to choose. 
	There's Zuben-el-genubi, Alpheratz, and Betelgeuse.

8	The universe, we're told, contains some pretty nifty things
	All held in place by gravity, not rubber bands or springs.
	Jupiter has lots of moons and Saturn has those rings.
	There's galaxies with spiral arms and also cosmic strings.
	The last of these have not been seen, so frankly anyone
	Might think that some astronomers just dreamt them up for fun.

9	The lecturer described to us some projects observational 
	On asteroids and comets which would frankly be sensational. 
	It seems these objects now and then can land here with a CRASH! 
	Or make the largest ocean waves if landing with a SPLASH! 
	So if the bug that bites you is called Comet Finding Fever 
	You could be a world famous Comet Prize Receiver.

10	While all of what we heard about was pretty fancy stuff, 
	For me the feeling was that it was simply not enough. 	
	It's one thing to hear someone else describe the universe.
	(It's mostly filled with empty space, for better or for worse.)
	The talk of stars and galaxies left me not feeling right.
	When all was said and done it merely whet my appetite.

11	Last year I finally found the cure for stellar deprivation
	Not far from the Grand Canyon on our annual vacation.
	And since then I can tell you I would really like to own a
	Cabin or a camping place near Flagstaff, Arizona.
	Every day we stayed there we had skies of brilliant blue,
	The kind of skies you'd say were unpolluted, tried and true.

12	The first night that we stayed there I awoke at who knows when.
	I heard the most ferocious noise, and then heard it again!
	From what I knew it sounded like a mountain lion roaring,
	But then I realized that it was just my father snoring!
	So after that I had no fear I'd meet a grizzly bear
	And got up with the urge to take a visit you-know-where.

13	The night was clear and cold, the quarter moon was setting fast.
	My flashlight batteries were weak and soon ran out of gas.
	Under such conditions you'd think nothing could be seen.
	'Twas neither dawn nor dusk.  It hovered somewhere inbetween.
	But when I reached a clearing and looked up and saw the view
	I gasped and yelled, "Eureka!"  Had you been there, you would too!

14	Everywhere were stars - they were a-blazing and a-gleaming.
	(I rubbed my eyes again.  Was I awake or was I dreaming?)
	Like jewels on a velvet cloth, they sparkled without measure.
	I, the jeweler, held what was a king's exquisite treasure.
	And passing overhead, quite grandly crowning this display -
	The streak, the band, the swath of light we call the Milky Way.

15	So I discovered something every ancient tribe once knew.
	The night sky isn't really dark.  It sparkles orange and blue.
	There's stars and planets to be seen, some comets by and by,
	And now and then a meteor will streak across the sky.
	But never mind the fancy things you might read in a book.
	Just bundle up 
	  then sally forth 
	    and go outside and look!

	But remember:
	   You can't see in the dark with the lights on.

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Note: The analogy in verse 2 works out to within a couple percent,
given the parallax of Proxima Centauri, the size of a baseball diamond,
and the actual distance from NY to Timbuktu, about 7210 km.