Dec 12: Star of Wonder, Star of Night

photo by Curtis McDougal taken  12/10/2011 

You may be asking yourself what in the world that is a picture of. It's a close-up shot taken of a lighted star that shines on the mountain just above our home each December. I tried to get a "far away" picture of it from my front porch, but I just couldn't manage it.

Our friend/neighbor, Harold Haugen puts this star up on the mountain every year in December, and hikes up to light it each night. We watch for it when we drive home at night. We look at it from our porch. It adds light and joy to our lives.

One time I heard Harold tell the story of the star. He said he had a dream one night, which showed him exactly how to make it and assemble it. He told his wife about it the next morning, and she rolled her eyes. He went ahead and made it. Each December he carries it up the mountain (too high for me to go), and puts it up. It's powered by a generator. Every night he hikes up the mountain and puts gasoline in the generator, and starts the generator. The star stays lit until the generator runs out of gas - about 6 hours.

Harold started doing it in 2004, before we moved here, and he's done it every year since. Usually a couple of men in the neighborhood hike up with him each night. He's taken youth from our church up there with him. Harold said he's gone up and found money left for him, with a note to say use the money for gas. He's had cookies left for him. He's occasionally met someone waiting for him on the mountain, just to tell him thanks.

Here are some very brief articles about the star. The first two are when he first started doing it. The 2009 article also has a two minute newscast - and that has a great shot of what the star looks like on the mountain from further away..
December 3, 2004 article
December 24, 2004 article
2009 article

Thanks to Harold for selflessly brightening our holiday season each year! It truly lifts my spirits each time I see it.

We Three Kings of Orient Are    words and music by John Henry Hopkins