Yesterday’s Reverb10 prompt was a hard one for me to answer:
Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year?
When I think of wonder I immediately think of a child and all of the excitement, wonder and joy that come from seeing things and experiencing moments for the first time. This year I’ve tried to experience the wonder and excitement of everyday moments. In essence, I’ve tried to relish common occurrences and experiences and to view them in a way I’ve never truly viewed them before.
When I ask my niece and nephew to help me bake or cook in the kitchen they are so excited to help. They prop themselves up on the kitchen chairs and peek over the table at whatever magical ingredients lay across the table.
Something as simple as rolling out crescent dough is suddenly a magical, mysterious process. They are surprised by the pop sound the can makes and the feel of the cold, damp dough. They place all of their thoughts and focus on molding tiny triangles into the perfect little rolls.
They live entirely in that moment. They aren’t thinking about what else they need to make for dinner, whether the mashed potatoes are getting cold, or whether all of the relatives are enjoying their time together. They are simply rolling out dough.
When I carve out the time to cook dinner I try my best to approach the meal in the same way as my niece and nephew would. I look at the ingredients, I smell, taste and touch them. I feel the smoothness of a red pepper or the crevices of an orange. I try to live in that moment as though it is the first time I’ve ever cooked dinner.
I try my best to think about the magic that is my life. The fact that a simple seed yielded that orange or red pepper, that a farmer cultivated that seed and that a truck driver put it on a vehicle so I could pick it up from the grocery store.
This year I’ve tried to focus more on the every day moments and treasures in my life. I have a lot of work left to do in this regard, but I have definitely enjoyed turning my focus and attention to the common, every day magic that is my life.