Never take the simple things for granted. Do you have your health? A solid job? Good family? Can you drive? Can you walk? Are you able to work? Are you healthy enough to parent your children? Do you have loving relationships? A faith that nourishes you? Do you live without pain? Can you breathe unassisted? Can you smell the earth after a rain storm? And the list goes on.
St John of the Cross (one of my favorite mystics) was imprisoned and beaten by fellow monks for months. During this painful time, "the dark night of the soul, " he found gratitude in the miracle of a flower blooming outside his cell window.
Every day is filled with miracles, if we open our eyes and learn to see. It often requires radical stillness to finally open up eyes that have been trained to see according to the dominant culture. "Be still and know that I am God." I too have been guilty of setting goals higher and higher without noticing the miracle of where I am. Many times ive been leveled, forced into stillness, and reminded that my call is in the quiet.
Every day, I see people take things for granted... everyday things like walking up stairs.... but I notice because I'm fighting to be able to do those very same things.
Today I paused with C to observe the difference between where i am now, where I was a year ago, and where I was two years ago. I'm making huge progress, yet I'm not going to take a single moment for granted. Living wakefully is my imperfect hope for today. Amen.
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