Instructions for living a life.
Pay attention.
Be astonished.
Tell about it.
― Mary Oliver
I was walking along a busy city street last week, and I was busy myself, inside my head, when the scent of roses stopped me in my tracks and I had to reverse my steps to find the rose bush just peeping over the wall. I stopped to smell the roses.
I am not sure I need many more words to explain this metaphor. If life is the busy street we are rushing along, if we are in a joyless, pressured existence, it maybe that we are not noticing what is available for us. We all have mundane tasks to perform and endless ‘to do’ lists. Perhaps a shift in perspective, a pause to look at the sky, hear the birds, smell the flowers, to smile or talk to a stranger, won’t complete the task any more effectively. Yet in choosing to enjoy or savour what we can, we can accept the frequent gift of pleasures available within our often busy lives.
I was not late for my meeting and arrived with gratitude and joy. Pausing and looking or listening to what has heart and meaning is never wasted.