Finding Wonder

Are you still finding wonder?  Wonder is a feeling of awe caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar or unexplainable.  The baby fox you see in the picture was a moment of wonder for me.  It is a rare gift to see a baby fox, let alone photograph one. I see my own wonder in her eyes.

Being out in nature never ceases to amaze me. Even though I live in the country where beauty is always around me, I don’t want to take it for granted. I am more grateful than ever for the simple things: the warmth of the sun on my face, the beauty of a sunset, the glimpse of a wild animal. This has been a difficult season, and I find myself becoming more intentional about making room for beauty. I don’t ever want to lose my sense of wonder.

Life is Too Loud

“Children live in a world of dreams and imagination, a world of aliveness… There is a voice of wonder and amazement inside all of us; but we grow to realize we can no longer hear it, and we live in silence. It isn’t that God stopped speaking; it is that our lives became louder.” ― Mike Yaconelli

This quote resonates with me.  Before Covid, my life was very ‘loud’ – full of good things, but so busy that I became desensitized to beauty. Finding wonder requires paying attention, but the pace that I was living at left me exhausted and numb.  I could see a sunset, but I wasn’t always able to experience the wonder of it.  I know there are difficult seasons in life that we can’t always avoid.  But with the declining mental and emotional health in our society, I am realizing more and more that I need to make room for wonder.  I need to have time to take a walk, gaze at a sunset, to listen to music. Covid slowed my pace significantly, and despite its losses, it gave me an increased capacity for wonder, gratitude and joy.

 Through the Eyes of a Child

“There is a voice of wonder and amazement inside all of us”….do you believe that?  Can you still hear it?  That voice is sacred to me, and I want to protect that place in my heart. Jesus said, “Unless you become like little children, you can’t enter the kingdom of God” (Matthew 18:3). Children see everything with fresh eyes. Small things become great. Ordinary things become extraordinary. The seemingly mundane things are layered with meaning and miracles.  Wonder makes us aware of the sacredness of life and tunes us to the presence of God.

There is still joy to be found, no matter how dark these days seem. The timeless beauty of nature, the power of a song, the gifts in each moment waiting to be noticed and received.  Where are you finding wonder?