Notes from an early spring morning:
I look out the window and see a family of birds rummaging for breakfast on a blanket of dewey grass.
There's a robin with her mate, flying in circles midair, gracefully embracing their lovers dance.
A cardinal lands on the arm of a tree, unconcerned with his surroundings, content with himself and the rays of light warming his wings.
Three doves peck and scavenge through soil, one keeps her distance from the other two, perhaps she has lost her eternal spouse.
Flying high in the sky, a chorus of geese soar in unison, each aware of their next synchronized movement, for this early morning voyage is a passage of unity.
There's something about sitting in solitude on a warm spring morning with just myself and nature. I often like to observe my surroundings upon waking as I sit at my desk that faces two large open windows. I let the breeze roll in and graze my skin; I feel gratitude for the sun's warmth resting on my hands as they type; and I breathe in the power of a new season - a season that births growth, new beginnings and positive change.
It's during these mornings of quiet and peace that I am reminded to open my eyes and look around me. What sounds are being brought to my ears? What sights are set before me? What emotions take place within me? What scents are drifting in from the window? How can I simply be here in this moment without being distracted by anything else?
I find that most days I can get really caught up in the busyness of life and unhealthy addictions to technology. If I'm sitting in my office, driving in my car, walking to a coffee shop, or simply stepping outside for fresh air, I've noticed that I often look to the sky and watch the birds. I become entranced by their swaying, their floating through air, the way they careen above and below the wind's current.
They've become a reminder for me to step back into the present moment. They remind me that there is always other life outside of my own perspective. There are other worlds existing all around me. There are animals flying, insects crawling, squirrels jumping from tree to tree, spiders spinning webs, birds making nests, and caterpillars awaiting their plight to be butterflies.
There is amazing, buzzing life all around me, all of the time. How often do I take the time to notice it? How often do I remember that all of this, all of these sensations, are for me? This life is for me.
Have you taken time today to breathe, to look at your world, to take in your view, to listen to the choir of birds in the nearest tree? Do you understand that everything that you see, feel, taste, touch, and experience is meant for you?
You are alive.
You are here.
You are meant to experience all of this.
This great and beautiful world.
Are you listening?
Are you watching?
Are you letting it all in?
This life is for you, dear one.
Don't forget to look around or you may miss it.
