(German artist Diane Scherer plants seeds & meticulously grows their roots into patterns)
The French philosopher Simone Weil wrote in her book The Need for Roots, “To be rooted is perhaps the most important and least recognized need of the human soul.” Yet we live in a world that most often leaves us uprooted with all of the upheaval and tumult. There is so much that can uproot us: divorce, death, the loss of a job or home or a friendship. How in the midst of the uncertainty of life can we remain rooted in something deeper, more vital, more necessary for our spirits?
On Friday morning I got in my Toyota to go to work, turned on the car and “Perfect Day” by Lou Reed was playing on the radio. It’s one of my favorite songs, so I took it as a lovely sign for the day ahead. Since it was a teacher’s workday, the school was quiet when I arrived. Few other teachers had arrived yet.
I went to my classroom, turned on the light and sat at my desk to drink my coffee. The only sounds were that of the air conditioner and the sound of a Northern Mockingbird singing outside my window from the branch of a budding Magnolia tree. A male mockingbird can learn around two hundred songs throughout his life. I wondered which number he was singing now. It was nice to sit there, sip my coffee and listen to his song, as if this was a private performance for me.
Earlier in the week, while I was working the car line, I stood out there, coffee in hand, and watched as the sun rose. Birds were singing in the trees. Suddenly I spotted two great blue herons flying overhead. I felt wonder and thought: What a glorious way to begin a Monday.
Yet no one else seemed to notice. They had missed one of those miraculous moments of grace the world can offer up to us as a surprise gift.
When it was time for me to back inside the school, I found myself quietly singing Nina Simone’s “Feeling Good.” It’s lyrics sprang up from my soul:
Birds flying high, you know how I feel Sun in the sky, you know how I feel Breeze driftin' on by, you know how I feel It's a new dawn It's a new day It's a new life for me, yeah...
It was a feeling of euphoria, a feeling of gratitude. But I also knew, wonder is a choice. I see wonder as a spiritual act because I believe we make sacred that which we give our attention to.
When I chose wonderment as my word for the year, I began a daily wonder journal to record such moments. All too often we seek meaning in our everyday lives but miss the reality that living our lives every day is the meaning. Annie Dillard wisely wrote, “How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” Life is imperfect but we must find spaces of joy and wonder within it. This requires attention and awareness.
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