A Year of Gratitude – July 6, 2024
When I set out on this year of gratitude on January 1st, my world was covered in snow. The gardens were bare, the days were cold.
And now we’re here, to this glorious moment when the gardens are filled with beautiful things to be grateful for. This gratitude is much easier. And yes, I’m also grateful for that.
How could I look at something as exquisite as this lily and not be awestruck? It’s too beautiful to seem real, too perfect in every way. In fact, had I not seen it with my own eyes, I might have questioned if it was real at all.
It’s funny how we can convince ourselves that something is too good to be real. At the same time, we’re looking for things that are beautiful enough to take our breath away. Why then do we question something when it does?
Perhaps it’s just human nature to wonder if something can be as wondrous as it appears. It’s probably a defense mechanism to guard ourselves against the disappointment we would feel if we discovered that something we thought was real was simply a mirage.
Pondering that makes me think back to when my children were small. Children can be persuaded into believing all sorts of magical things. You can watch as the discovery washes across their face, as they believe that something is as enchanting as it seems. Their belief is what makes it real.
Later, should they discover that what they believed to be real wasn’t so, they will feel disappointment. They might be sad, but they won’t let that single disappointment prevent them from believing that magic and wonder still exist. They’ll keep right on looking for it.
Why then do we as adults allow life experiences to prevent us from looking for it? Why do we question beautiful things?
I don’t have the answers. I just know that somewhere along the way, life erodes that childlike ability from us. It’s sad that it does because believing in a bit of magic and wonder could sure come in handy as an adult. It would help on those days where the world seems cloudy and dull.
I’m trying to bring a bit of that wonder back into my thinking, to practice seeing things in that way. When I allow myself to look at something as beautiful as this and just be awash with amazement at how magnificent it is, something quite magical happens. For a moment, I give myself permission to be in only this moment, to have eyes that look for and accept something marvelous for the sake of enjoying it.
I wish that I could have done more of that when my children were small. I was so busy getting things done, taking care of what needed to be taken care of, that I didn’t make time to join them in their wonder.
I guess it’s better late than never. I’ll have to thank them for the reminder. They gave it to me years ago and I’ve been carrying the memory around with me. Now it’s time to put it to good use.
This post is part of our A Year of Gratitude Series. You can find the introduction, inspiration, and entire year’s gratitude’s posts here.