Celebrating the Ordinary

I actually saw the poem below on Facebook, shared by Teacherslog and also by a friend of mine (Kim S.). It made me think and I wanted to include it in my blog.

“The Parent’s Tao Te Ching” by William Martin – Shared by We Are Teacherslog

  

I found this to be a wonderful sentiment. It does not mean, however, that we, and our children, should not follow our dreams, our passions, our intellect, and our capacity for learning and growing. In my opinion, taking every opportunity to learn new skills, and to move to the next level in our lives is important. It fulfills us.

It is likewise essential though, as the words above remind us, to take sweet time to appreciate the beauty and wonder in small things – a bright, white and yellow daisy, a soaring, red tailed hawk, the wrinkled hands of an old woman, the dynamism of a flitting hummingbird, the curious coo of an infant, the brush of a lover’s hand, the taste of clover honey, the invigorating splash of ocean spray, and the awesome sight of a full moon still dominating a morning sky. All of these tiny snapshots can be captured in the mind and give us reason to rejoice.

I was lucky to have been taught by my mother not simply to look, but to notice, to observe; I was taught not simply to listen, but to hear; and I was taught that sometimes it’s better to be silent rather than to fill the air with words with no meaning. It takes practice and patience at times, but the end result catapults us into a much greater understanding and appreciation for the world around us. I suppose it is best to note that even in the ordinary lies the extraordinary and noticing that opens doors.