I'm Floating in a Most Peculiar Way

I’m a fierce sci-fi fan, both books and movies, so I feel like I’ve lived in space. I taught my students about space for the first time this year, which was a challenge. The stories and movies aren’t actually real. I think of the god Mars and the goddess Venus, and wonder why didn’t Earth get a god for a name? The sun seems angry yet cheery, and Mercury has some atmospheric issues. Does it help to picture them with human features and god-like traits? I combined the two, staring at spacey pictures with planetary colors and mythical creatures, reading their legends, and then making something in the middle.