He already had one.

On the previous full moon, four astronauts were launched on a mission around the moon. I hope you saw the launch.

A few days into the flight, this was their view.

"You might see the four of us and think we are the crew of this mission. But when you look at that tiny blue marble in all that blackness, you realize: Planet Earth, you are a crew."

Christina Koch - Astronaut - Artemis II

Now, the short story I promised last month.

Chronobiology is the study of how living things keep time, from the beat of the heart to the arc of the year.

One of the leading scientists in this field is Professor Takashi Yoshimura at Nagoya University in Japan.

He studies how animals experience their circannual rhythm: how a few extra minutes of daylight, imperceptible to us, sets an entire biological season in motion.

I wrote to offer him The Present as a gift.

A week later, he replied with this photo.

"Thank you for your offer, but I already have one."

He already had one.

Now, the Japanese are known for being thoughtful gift givers, so someone likely purchased it for the professor. And of all the people in a country of 122 million, a leading scientist in circannual rhythms is probably the most likely to own one.

Still, since 2012, I've shipped around 50 editions of The Present to Japan.

Fifty.

It's the same full moon everywhere at once.
Yoshimura studies the year every living thing on our planet shares.

We are a crew.

Do you remember this photo?

The first international installation of The Present is now up in Halle, Germany. Here it is with Steve, the gentleman who made it all happen.

The Present in Public

In addition to the school in Halle, we've confirmed new placements:

• A time lab at UCLA
• A childhood development center in Seoul, Korea
• And a public area in Yoshimura's own Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules, Nagoya University, Japan

Do you know of a public place where it belongs?

Hit reply and let me know.

Thank you for reading.

In time,

Scott Thrift