This morning, early, I gave myself an assignment. To watch for beauty.
And then I promptly forgot. I just “did my day,” until mid-afternoon, when I walked out to get the mail.
My husband says this is his least favorite week of spring, thanks to these little guys:
And really, who can blame him? They’re everywhere – driveway, flowerbeds, deck, lawn – and since he’s the keeper of all things outdoors around here, they’re just messy.
So I’m looking at these piles everywhere through the lens of messy and extra work for my husband, and then I shifted my gaze.
And saw beauty.
Still messy? Yep. But suddenly I saw a beautiful mess.
All I did was turn my head.
Such a lesson for me, today. A shift in gaze, of attitude, a change of heart in just the slightest direction and something irritating (and frankly ugly) changed. Completely.
Sometimes I choose to keep staring at the ugly, when I really know I should turn my head. And sometimes I’m just blind to the possibility that any other view exists. Even that, though, is a choice, because I always have the option to pull back, shift slightly to the left or right, and catch a different perspective. Will I always see beauty, just by looking on the other side of the driveway? Probably not. But it’s guaranteed that I won’t see it if I don’t turn my head.
As I prepare for a new season of life, one I’ve longed for and hoped for, I am exquisitely aware that if I’m not careful, I’ll miss beautiful things. I’ll miss what’s right in front of me.
And this. Right in front of me a few minutes ago.
Fifteen unexpected minutes with this boy-child.
Tell me that’s not beautiful.
Here’s to not missing it tomorrow,
Angie
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