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Today's
Meditation:
There is so much on this planet that could and should
instill a sense of wonder in us, yet we somehow learn to
be a bit cold and callous, taking these things for granted
and not seeing anymore just how amazing they really
are. From the ways that our fantastic bodies work to
the incredible fearsome beauty of a snowstorm to the jets
flying overhead to the incredibly delicate intricacy of
the tiniest flower or insect, this world is filled with
example after example of wonders.
Yet we look at them and feel no wonder. In fact, we
usually don't even think of these things at all-- we just
see them without considering them. We react to them
based on what we're doing at the moment-- the snowstorm
becomes a pain in the neck when we have to drive, the
insect is an unwelcome invader when it's inside our
home. Children, for the most part, still see the
wonder in this world, yet we're teaching them earlier and
earlier to put aside their sense of wonder in order to
appreciate more their logic and their abilities to gather
and process information.
A kid staring at a screen to play a video game or watch a
movie isn't going to notice any wonder at all, while the
kid who's playing outside at least has the chance to
explore, notice, feel, and see.
And perhaps that's what happens to most of us-- we don't
wonder because we spend so much time indoors, staring at
screens while we're fed a steady stream of information or
entertainment, all the while growing further and further
away from a state of awareness, of mindfulness, of
wonder. It is possible to recapture that sense of
wonder, but it obviously will take not just opening up our
eyes and our hearts, but also giving up so much time spent
on other things that squash the sense of wonder like a bug
under our boot. I suppose it's up to us-- if we value
it enough, we'll search it out and let it be an important
part of our life.
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