Awakening to Life's Everyday Miracles

There I was, sitting in an auto repair shop, surrounded by the mundane sounds of mechanics at work and the faint smell of motor oil. My mind was occupied by a whirlwind of daily concerns – health worries, future anxieties, and the ever-present to-do list. Just another ordinary day, right?

But then, something extraordinary happened.

I opened our Pause Poetry Corner newsletter and stumbled upon Mary Oliver's poem, "This Morning." As I read, something shifted within me. Let me share it with you:

This Morning by Mary Oliver This morning the redbirds' eggs   have hatched and already the chicks   are chirping for food. They don't   know where it's coming from, they   just keep shouting, "More! More!"   As to anything else, they haven't   had a single thought. Their eyes   haven't yet opened, they know nothing   about the sky that's waiting. Or   the thousands, the millions of trees.   They don't even Know they have wings.   And just like that, like a simple   neighborhood event, a miracle is   taking place.

As I visualized these tiny birds, knowing nothing but hunger and the instinctive call for "more, more," something profound stirred within me. It was as if a giant bubble rose from the depths of my being, breaking the surface with a splash that manifested as tears welling in my eyes.

Right there, in that utterly ordinary moment, I was elevated. Lifted from my mundane concerns into a space of pure wonder and awe.

This, my friends, is the power of wonder.

The Miracle of the Everyday

How often do we rush through our days, blind to the miracles unfolding around us? We get so caught up in our routines, our worries, our plans, that we forget to notice the sheer marvel of existence.

But as Mary Oliver so beautifully reminds us, miracles are taking place all around us, all the time. They're happening in our neighborhoods, in our backyards, even in auto repair shops. The hatching of eggs, the first cry of a newborn (human or bird!), the sun rising each morning – these are all everyday miracles that we often overlook.

Pausing for Wonder

The practice of mindfulness teaches us to pause, to come home to presence, and to notice. And when we truly notice, we open ourselves to wonder. 

Wonder is not just for children or poets. It's a vital nutrient for the human spirit, available to all of us if we only remember to look. It's a way of seeing the world that can transform the ordinary into the extraordinary, the mundane into the miraculous.

When we pause to experience wonder:

• We connect with something larger than ourselves

• We step out of our anxieties about the future and regrets about the past

• We nourish our souls with the beauty and mystery of existence

• We remember the preciousness of life

Cultivating Wonder in Daily Life

So how can we cultivate more wonder in our lives? Here are a few simple practices:

1. Pause and notice: Take a few moments each day to simply observe your surroundings. Look at familiar objects as if seeing them for the first time.

2. Engage your senses: Really listen to the birds singing, feel the breeze on your skin, savor the aroma of your morning coffee.

3. Ask questions: Channel your inner child and ask "why" and "how" about the world around you. Let yourself be curious.

4. Seek out nature: Even in urban environments, nature is all around us. Notice the resilience of a plant growing through a crack in the sidewalk, or the intricate pattern of veins in a leaf.

5. Practice gratitude: Regularly acknowledging the good in your life can open your eyes to the wonder that's always present.

The Transformative Power of Wonder

That moment in the auto repair shop was a powerful reminder for me. It showed me that wonder is always just an arm's reach away. We don't need to scale mountains or travel to exotic locations to experience it. We simply need to pause and give ourselves permission to see the miracle of this strange and wild experience of being alive.

Wonder has the power to lift us out of our narrow concerns and connect us to the vast, beautiful mystery of existence. It reminds us that we are part of something much larger than our individual lives. And in doing so, it can bring a sense of peace, joy, and profound aliveness.

So I invite you, dear friend, to pause right now. Take a deep breath. Look around you. Can you spot the miracle in this moment? Can you feel the wonder of simply being here, now, alive and aware?

My partner Rena guided this beautiful meditation recently. I encourage you to give it a listen if you'd like to tap further into this capacity for wonder right here, right now....

Remember, as Mary Oliver shows us, sometimes the most profound miracles are also the simplest "neighborhood events." All we need to do is open our eyes – and our hearts – to let them in.

Together, as a community, we have the power to amplify the wonder in our lives. I encourage you to share your reflections and experiences of wonder in our Pause Slack space. Let's inspire each other to keep our eyes open to the everyday miracles all around us.

With wonder and love,

Ryan

Pause Cofounder