picture yourself on a far-away volcanic island on a warm, cloudless summer night. The surrounding ocean is as still as a lake. only the tiniest of waves wash against the white sand. All is quiet. You are lying on the beach. Your eyes are closed. The warm, sun-baked sand heats up air saturated with sweet, exotic scents. There is peace all around. 

A wild streak in the distance makes you jump and stare into the darkness.

Then: nothing

Whatever street is now quiet. There is nothing to be afraid of after all. This island may be dangerous for some creatures, but not for you. You are a human, the mightiest of predators. Your friends will soon be joining you for a drink and you are on holiday, so you lied back on the sand to focus on thoughts worthy of your species. 

A myriad of tiny lights flicker throughout the vast night sky. Stars.

 Even with the naked eye you see them everywhere. And you remember questions you had as a child: what are they, these stars?  Why do they flicker? How far away are they? And now you wonder:  will we ever really know? With a side, you relax back on the warm sand and put these silly questions aside, thinking, why should we care?

 A tiny shooting star gently streaks across the sky over head and, just as you are about to make a wish, the most extraordinary thing happens:  as if to answer your last question, 5 billion years suddenly pass and the next thing you know, you are no longer on a beach, but in outer space, floating through emptiness. You can see and hear and feel, but your body is gone. You are ethereal. Pure mind.  And you don't even have the time to wonder what just happened or to shout and call for help, for you are in the most peculiar of situations.