I feel a kinship to Orion.

It goes back to my adolescence when I ran a trapline with my younger brother.

The constellation, named for the legendary hunter of Greek mythology, dominated the winter night sky.

Let's face it, Orion, with its three distinctive stars lined in the middle and the brightness of Betelgeuse in the right shoulder, is maybe the easiest constellation to spot.

Especially in the crisp night sky after a cold front.

Our family was out late enough one night last week that our daughter Sara picked out Orion coming up in the east while she stared out the car window.

It made me happy that she found it and was drawn to it.

I was about her age when I first began noticing Orion.

And I still find it pulling me into my winter mode.

As we enter the heart of hunting season, I make it habit to get up earlier in the complete darkness before 5 a.m.

My morning walks with the meathead are now in the dark. For two mornings in a row, I marveled at Orion dropping low in the western sky.

To refresh my memory of the details and meaning of Orion, I checked here.

I find some comfort in Orion's appearance again as winter approaches.

As though some things remain the same.

Stable.

Sane.

Then I messed up all that good feeling and voted this morning.