Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Day 31 of Your Year to Wellness: Finding Miracles in the Mundane

Miracles in the Mundane
There is always something new, if you want to see it, you must BE it

My life is constantly moving. No two days are ever the same. Yesterday I woke up in Savannah, Georgia to the song of a marsh wren (The bird feeder was out of nuts) and today, I heard the sounds of the ocean and the early morning traffic from the Coronado Bay Bridge in Coronado, California.

I can feel the presence of those who are long gone but linger still.
L. Frank Baum, the author of the Oz series, Dorothy and The Wizard of Oz, The Road to Oz and The Emerald City, came to Coronado more than 100 years ago to write. He’d start in the wee hours writing until noon. Then he’d stroll around Coronado with his wife to experience the beauty of the place.
 Of Coronado, he wrote; “And everyday her loveliness shines pure, without a flaw, new charms entrance our every glance and fill our souls with awe.”
Baum’s words embrace the truth of our existence; that every single day, there is newness.
When I lived here in San Diego, I’d walk the beach and quote Jeremiah (The weeping prophet) from Lamentations saying, “God your mercies are new every morning, great is thy faithfulness.
This is the key to living fully; doing the same things over and over again but always seeing the newness and being grateful for it.
I cannot understand boredom; how can you be bored in your own mind? (Don’t answer that.) Wellness requires that you create healthy habits and do them over and over again.
When I started writing these posts I asked myself if I’d be able to do this every single day. I wondered about travel days with the early morning flights that I’m fond of. I knew that writing at night was not an option as I’m just not that swift after 7, so I decided that I would get up a few hours earlier no matter what or where I am.
By doing this thing over and over again I get better at it and it becomes a normal part of my life. Still, it is ever changing and evolving.
My daughter once pointed out something that no one else had noticed, “Mom is a creature of habit,” she said, “you mess with her habits and she turns into a creature.”
I need my routines. Without them I’d miss flights, forget appointments and throw off the schedules of other busy people. Still, each day, I see the routine as new.
This is the Art of Transformation; that by doing the same things over and over again, we become better at being who we are and every single day, there is newness.

Great is our faithfulness to our own improvement.
·         Don’t bore yourself—Seek new ways to do what you need to do. Find a new walking route or a new exercise and add it to your daily routine.

·         Seek out the newness—you work with people you don’t truly know. Ask questions about the lives and backgrounds of the folks you see daily but don’t know well.

·         Look with new eyes—we pass the same things day after day without really seeing what’s there. Today, truly look.

·         Listen—much of what we need to learn happens when we sit still and listen. Take a moment to hear the sounds around you.

·         Feel—Think about the lives that have done what you’ve done and have been where you’ve been and feel their presence.

I know, I went deep again, but as I’ve said before, the further out you go, the easier it gets, Life’s got you.

Be well, be you, Be New
Bertice Berry, PhD.

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