A card on my bulletin board says, “Look around you. Appreciate what you have. Nothing will be the same in a year.” I see it every day and although it doesn’t always register in my awareness, it’s truth has had its impact. Look back a year ago in your own life. See for yourself.
A quiet voice inside me says, “Collect these moments. In time they will be cherished memories, much as your memories of childhood are. They will remind you where you have traveled on your journey, the places of delight and joy, the places of darkness and sorrow, the people you’ve known and the stories you wrap around them, the way your view of life evolved as you lived it, each experience nourishing it, feeding it, how you asked it questions, and learned to hear the answers that spoke to your heart.”
The other day I heard a little group of people talking about how time feels like it’s passing more quickly. After a few speculations about it the conversation turned to whether we’re on a sphere or a disc or inside a giant spaceship. Finally, a woman ended it by rolling her eyes and proclaiming, ”Well, whatever this is we’re on, it sure has spedded up.”
Yes, hasn’t it! And it shows no sign of slowing down. Change is happening at such a rapid pace that there’s no time for adjustment. There’s only what’s in front of you, and even that’s in a state of accelerating change.
Another phrase that caught my ear recently was uttered by a space launch broadcaster as the rocket on the wall-sized screen she was facing blew up. She called it an “unexpected rapid disassembly.” It sure was! And interestingly, it rather describes the general state of life as we’ve known it as well. We’re not, I’m sure you’ve noticed, in Kansas anymore.
If you think the world is growing increasingly incomprehensible, you’re right. The familiar is melting away faster with every passing day. Everywhere, cultures have changed, cherished traditions have faded away, words and symbols no longer mean what they did. The statement, “Everything you know is wrong,” seems to grow more and more true as even the practice of science itself is not what we knew it to be. It can be easy to lose your bearings sometimes.
But here’s a secret: You can still be happy. You can still love, and forgive, and laugh. You can still be grateful that you get to experience this life, your life, with everything it holds.
That’s what the little sign on my wall taught me. I still work toward the achievements I want to attain. I still scan future possibilities as if the world will remain stable long enough to allow them. I still believe in happy endings. And sometimes I take time to look around, and to appreciate everything around me, to truly appreciate it. Because, a year from now, everything will have changed.
Look around, not only with your eyes but with your heart, and put all you see on a special shelf in your mind, in the corner that holds all your memories. Because memories matter. They will bring you strength, and comfort, and courage in the days ahead.
Wishing you a week of beautiful moments.
Warmly,
Susan
Image by Vicki Hamilton from Pixabay