Wow! What’s That ! ? !
We’ve all had such a moment. Hopefully many of them. Hopefully nearly every day. Frank and I just had one yesterday.
We were standing in the kitchen and by some trick of the afternoon light, the wall under the desk, in the office, right below the closed shutters, looked like it was iridescent or had suddenly turned into an awakening computer screen, only much deeper and imperceptible in it’s nature. We were both startled and felt compelled to walk toward it to get a better look. It was so weird and surprising. We wondered, ‘How could such a thing be?’
As we walked closer, we could see that it was just the wall, with the usual cords and whatnot draped down from behind the desk, and somehow the bright afternoon light reflected off the back of the shutters or the back of my old metal computer monitor, or something, was illuminating the wall in a way that either hadn’t ever happened before, or that we simply hadn’t ever noticed before. The moment passed. We brushed it off, still a little surprised, as ‘just the wall.’ Then we left it and went about our business.
The interesting thing to me, in hindsight, was how it stopped us both. It caught our eye, gave us pause, knocked us right out of our thoughts and activities and drove us into action, in this case, the need to investigate. We both jumped right into the present moment with an excited curiosity, almost a touch of fear and an alluring love at the same time.
These are the qualities of awe and wonder. And when we get there, we step right into the right hemisphere of our brains. Time is replaced by a sense of flow in the present moment. There is a pause, we open our mouths and our eyes. We listen. The surprise that we feel at the same time demands a moment of recalibration as we consider the newness and the allure. We loose a sense of self and feel called forth into action or response, the need to do something. All at once we suddenly tap into a flood of possibilities, new ideas, creative potential and a feeling of healing or well being. All of this, all at the same time.
In wonder, we also find a locked in unity, a sense of togetherness or oneness. When Frank and I saw that light, we both experienced the same body movements, a lifting of the head and chest, a dropping of the jaw, then a peering closer, focusing on the same point, listening, then moving forward, both of our minds and our sense of consciousness, open and as one. We were moved to respond.
Fascinated and fascinating. A widened perspective.
Babies and small children experience this sort of state on a regular basis. It is part of everyday life. Everything is new and calls out for our attention. Everything invites us to wonder, to try to figure it out, to open to all the possibilities that could possibly be in play. “How does that fly fly?” “Wow! Look at the shadows of the leaves playing on the sidewalk in the sun.” This is where art dwells, imagination, creative flow, discovery, the unified whole. And it’s all imbued with a sense of love.
As infants, with mommy or daddy near, we feel safe and protected. (Given the natural parent/child bonding experience.) Our parents even join us in our surprise and delight, as the world of exploration opens before us, reliving for themselves the joy of discovery and the love that we all share.
When we bask in this state, we slip ease-fully into Divine Placement in the grander scheme of all things. Our ego or sense of individuality falls away and we enter the flow of oneness. All is right with the world, everything is possible and it’s all moving toward love. In the pause of awe, we become free. We open our hearts and minds and become one with everything. Just like any other creative moment, be it singing or dancing, playing music or painting, splashing in the waves, digging in the sand, or stringing beads, we feel ourselves fitting nicely into the whole of the greater totality of being. And, at the same time find ourselves gratefully opening to the unlimited potential and the wider perspective that dwells there, amongst all possibilities.
So, let’s remember Oneness and Wonder. Let's let ourselves be caught more often, even daily, if we can, by the jaw dropping beauty and mystery that surround us in every moment of every day. Let’s not brush it off as something nameable or explainable. Let’s be baffled for a moment before things start to come clear. Let’s twirl in the miraculous wonder of it all and move together toward greater healing and love, where new ideas and creative solutions pop up in front of us, coming seemingly right out of nowhere.
Josephine Laing
© 2024