“When we speak of magic we should speak of those moments that were the purest, when the stars were bright and when laughter was loud. Those are the most magical moments in life.”
Dear Universe,
Most of us, at some point or another, have probably wished that life would come with an instruction manual.
Naturally this manual would have a table of contents and a comprehensive index that we could scroll through. The answers would literally be at our fingertips.
Of course no such book exists, not yet anyway.
The other day I happened across a quote that has been a long-time favorite and I wondered if the key to life could really be this simple.
“Instructions for living a life:
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.”
~Mary Oliver
I guess it stood out to me because on my best days, this is exactly what I end up doing. I have found when I focus on being present in the moment, I notice things I may have otherwise missed. Usually, the storyteller in me tells about it. Sometimes I even write about it on this blog. 🙂
The other night was a perfect example of this.
I went outside to enjoy the cool evening air. I had forgotten my phone inside. For a second I considered going back in to get it.
I’m so glad I didn’t.
After about a minute, I looked to my right and saw a rainbow had formed. I stood up to get a better look when I noticed it was actually an entire rainbow. The semi-circle lit up the sky and was so majestic I thought for sure that each end had a pot of gold, waiting to be discovered.
After several minutes of staring in awe, I sat back down and looked to my left. The sky had turned from a dismal gray into a vibrant canvas of bubblegum pink, baby blue and lavender. Bright, white, streaky clouds interrupted the flow of colors now and then which made for a sight that was simply stunning.
There I sat, nestled in scenery that looked worthy of story books, cartoons and faraway lands. As if the night didn’t seem magical enough, I suddenly spotted a single red balloon drifting higher and higher into the atmosphere. I watched until it disappeared and that’s when I saw a pair of green balloons follow in pursuit of the red one.
As nighttime set in, I could hear the sound of nearby fireworks, cracking, popping, enthralling.
Of course I had no camera to document any of these things because my phone was inside, but I guess if I had my phone, I may have missed all that was transpiring around me.
Sure, life can get pretty complicated. It can be confusing at times and yes, hard. We don’t always find the answers we are looking for. But sometimes, life can deliver meaningful, magical moments—ones that make stop in your tracks to appreciate the awesomeness of it all.
It’s a nice reminder that you, Universe, are there. You may not always give us what we want, but you always deliver what we need.
All we have to do is show up, pay attention and revel in the beauty of it all. And of course, tell about it. Because in telling our story, we may learn from it and others may too. Our stories become shared. Our lessons and insights become universal.
We may not ever have that instruction book for life, but we do have each other.
Much Gratitude,
A
