Over the past week or so life has thrown some darkness my way. So how amid all this can one keep perspective and move on?
What I have found in my time here on good old planet earth is that it is important to take solace in the small but wonderful things that surround me every day.
I take a moment now and then to sit on my deck in the sunlight, close my eyes and simply listen. I breathe in the world as it is with all my senses and let the music of the world, the music of life, wash over me. The birds still sing, the wind still blows, and the sun still warms my skin. Somewhere someone mows the lawn and somewhere someone hammers away, creating something new. It’s in these moments that I see that what is important in life is life itself.
I take a moment and cherish the experience of sitting with my sticky, goofy, wonderful child while she eats her watermelon and stares at the clouds.
“That one looks like me daddy! It has eyes and a mouth!”
When the sun retreats behind a cloud she complains of being cold so I kneel down and wrap my arms around her. “Are you warm now?” “I love you daddy.” Chomp chomp chomp…watermelon really is great isn’t it?
I sit at my computer. I read the words of friends and family. I see the recorded moments of new children, new love and new pains. I see that despite whatever may be happening in my life, life moves on in all its wonder. This makes me smile, and gives me perspective. It’s not all about me and my problems. It’s about everyone. Everyone’s joys, everyone’s pain and everyone’s moments.
With this perspective I move on and embrace my life with all it’s ups and downs. I let it shape me, but not break me. I let it wash over me, but not pull me down. I experience the world, never alone, but a connected and important part of it; making my own music and enjoying the symphony of which I am a part.
That’s how I keep my perspective. That’s how I find a way to smile, whatever comes my way.
Have fun today and take a moment to listen. You may be pleasantly surprised by what you hear.