If you were born in April, you are among some very impressive personages. This month’s birthday list includes a wide range of creative, talented people who have literally changed the world and the progress of civilization. Among them you will find writers, actors, monarchs, artists, composers, scientists, inventors and geniuses in nearly every area of human endeavor and innovation. According to the Zodiac, babies born from March 29th through April 19th are under the sign of Aries the Ram; those born during the latter part of the month and on through May 20th, are assigned the sign of Taurus the Bull. Both are considered to be strong, creative and extraordinarily talented.

This list of just a very small portion of familiar names of persons born in April follows in no particular order: Samuel Morse, Barbra Streisand, Charlie Chaplin, Muhammed founder of Islam, King George VI, Queen Elizabeth II, Leonardo da Vinci, Maya Angelo, Marlon Brando, Oliver Cromwell, Charlemagne, William Harvey, Max Planck, John Muir, Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Holiday, Washington Irving, Hans Christian Anderson, Al Pacino, Conan O’Brian, Willie Nelson, Alec Guinness, William Shakespeare and Giacomo Casanova.

Those born under the sign of Aries are said to be natural leaders, bold, confident, passionate, honest, creative, brave and optimistic. Persons born under the sign of Taurus are reputed to be reliable, practical, loyal, ambitious, sensual, stubborn, possessive, patient and trustworthy. Some lists offer contradictory characteristics to both personalities, and there is a vast variety of so-called “official” lists.

I found that characteristics listed by various persons reputed to know about these things tend to vary dramatically. I expect that the list-makers gleaned their clues from the personalities of their own friends and relatives, or possibly from characteristics of famous people throughout history. Whatever the sources, if you consult enough lists, you can find flattering characteristics about anyone you admire – and equally unflattering descriptions for those you dislike.

Many people rely on the signs of the Zodiac to plan their daily lives. They believe that the relationships of the stars at various times of the year influence their lives directly and they consult their horoscopes regularly for advice. My personal opinion about such a belief is that the practice was probably a way of explaining things people didn’t understand, much the same as the beliefs of the ancients that the gods directed daily events. I would add the word “gullible” to the list of characteristics for those believers.

Once upon a time, the Zodiac conformed to the calendar, with each sign tidily assigned to its own month with the year beginning in March when the first signs of life began to surface after the long, dark winter. It eventually became evident that the climate didn’t change at the same point on the calendar every year and adjustments were made to the calendar in attempts to correct the discrepancies. Unfortunately, they couldn’t get it quite right (and still haven’t gotten it perfect) and the inconsistencies between months and stars widened. You’ll find that, even in these modern times, the period known as Aries begins some years on April 20th and on the 21st in other years. It’s obvious that the Creator had more important things in mind than clocks and calendars. Or, it may have been a carefully calculated plan to keep us humble, to recognize that we aren’t all that smart, and that we aren’t in charge of everything. Maybe the stars actually are in charge, and we are on the wrong path when it comes to unraveling that mystery. If so, maybe we are, at last, turning our attention in the right direction as we look farther into the cosmos and begin deeper investigations of our universe.

Most of you aren’t old enough to remember the burst of comic-book heroes and speculations about space that erupted during the early 20th century. Most people then dismissed it as fantasy, but what if it was the beginning of the truth? It’s all food for thought, you know.