Yesterday was my birthday. There were no noisy parties or complicated blessings, but it contained the most surprising gift from heaven - a clear and cloudless sky all day long, as clear as a washed sapphire. What was even more exciting was that the Earth welcomed a strong geomagnetic storm, and the forecast predicted auroras to erupt at night. This kind of good luck is the most precious gift on my birthday, how can I sit at home?

Knowing that the latitude of my city is low, the probability of auroras appearing is already slim. Even if they do appear, the brightness may be too weak to capture. However, the impulse in my heart has already broken through all concerns, and there is only one thought: rush! I have already chosen Mount Our Lady in Batazi as my parking spot. It has a wide view and is far away from the city's light pollution, making it an excellent place to observe the starry sky.

At dusk, carrying a heavy camera, tripod, and power bank, I stepped into the cold winter of minus 20-30 degrees Celsius. The cold wind is like countless ice needles, densely piercing my face and hands, piercing through the thick down jacket. The piercing coolness seeps into my body through the seams, making me shiver uncontrollably. The mountain road is rugged, and every step is particularly laborious. Before climbing far, one is already panting heavily. The thin sweat seeping out of the forehead is instantly frozen into tiny ice particles by the cold wind, sticking to the skin, both cold and itchy.

With a strong obsession, I finally climbed to the top of the mountain. Without a chance to rest, I immediately got busy. My fingertips were already stiff and numb from the cold, and even adjusting the camera parameters was particularly difficult. My hands trembled slightly in the cold wind, and I almost knocked off the camera several times. After finally setting up the tripod and adjusting the camera, I was already stiff and my teeth were trembling from the cold. I quickly wrapped myself in clothes and ran back to the car to warm up and regain my soul, hoping that the camera could successfully capture the silhouette of the aurora.

It's despicable that on this cold winter night, it's so cold that it's beyond imagination. Even the specially prepared high-power power bank couldn't withstand the piercing cold and was forced to shut down due to the freezing. When I discovered it, the camera's delayed video only lasted for a short twenty seconds before the frame abruptly stopped. I quickly flipped through the captured footage and unexpectedly caught a glimpse of a few faint red light shadows faintly appearing in the picture, falling on the northern sky - that is exactly the direction where the Northern Lights should appear. But the blush was too hazy and fleeting. I stared at the screen repeatedly, but I couldn't be sure if that hazy blush was the aurora I had been longing for. Full of anticipation mixed with a hint of doubt, and a hint of disappointment that was not fully captured, surged in my heart, but I was helpless.

I returned to the mountaintop and looked at the dazzling stars in the dark blue sky, shining gently and brightly, as if comforting my little regret. Since it was not possible to capture a complete delayed video, we carefully selected a frame from the limited 20 second delay sequence and used it as the basis to complete a starry sky work, capturing this special birthday night.

Although I have not yet confirmed the capture of the aurora, despite enduring the harsh winter and only selecting one frame from the delayed sequence to complete the work, the joy and adventure of this pursuit have become the most precious gift of my birthday. Even if there are regrets, it can be considered complete.