“How many stars does it take to carry our worries away–can one star take away one worry? If so, what happens when a whole sky full of stars can’t take it all away?

“Is it possible to be so noble that not even the stars deserve to carry the weight of your heart?

“At that point, do you continue staring at the sky and let it absorb whatever it can, or is it better to avoid the disappointment? For me, I feel like I’m betraying the stars when I stare up at the sky and can’t empty my mind. As if I can’t share everything with it—as if I’m keeping secrets.

“You think maybe we have a special connection with a star? That maybe we spend our whole lives releasing all our emotions to one special star. One day, the star dies and disappears, and we look up into the sky and feel only loneliness. We don’t even know why we’re sad, or that we are. And we never find out why.

“The stars are so many light years away. Maybe the sad souls are just the ones who have formed a special connection with a star that’s long dead.”

He didn’t answer any of her questions. Instead, he turned to her and asked, “When’s the last time you heard the sound of your own breath?”

“What does it sound like?” she asked?

“The weight of the stars.”