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Pink Land and other celebrations of the ordinary stuff of life
Another Wednesday morning – one that’s totally out of the ordinary! Ok, so it didn’t look like that at first glance. After all, how can something as mundane as taking out the garbage at 7 a.m. be extraordinary? But in its own way, it was.
I trudged down the stairs and stepped outside, into air so cold it made my eyes water. The rain that had fallen yesterday was now a sheet of ice underfoot, and it reflected the rosy glow of the dawn. I walked into Pink Land gingerly, so as not to wipe out. When I returned indoors, the sudden warmth fogged up my glasses. I unfogged, and thought about the many transitions that a single day brings. We are always on the threshold of something new, even in ordinary moments. I’m not always able to see the extraordinary in ordinary life, but when it happens, I go into the day with more creativity, energy, and gratitude.
How have you experienced the extraordinary in ordinary life? Please share your story in the comment box below.
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My thought: Pink Land moments help us to realize what is always true. Jesus is not only the destination for our journey – he is the WAY. Which is why we need to stop and realize that we are already in possession of that which we seek.
Good insights, Marsha! Maybe our realizations of the truth are more like Grace Land moments
When I see an amazing sunrise or sunset or moon, or when one of my kitties makes me laugh out loud, or when I smell rain or snow on the air, or the crabapple blossoms in spring, those are my Pink Land moments.
I like the images you mention, wp! Ah, the crabapple blossoms — gives me hope that spring will come, even though it’s only 20 degrees here right now…
For the past few years, I’ve put together a calendar of some of the extraordinary ordinary sights I’ve seen around this area. And I love seeing other people’s photos with the same kinds of insights. You’re right, SJ…those glimpses of the wonderful are totally energizing and calming at the same time. They make us stop and take a deep breath and, usually, smile.
Ahhh, so true, Marg
The ordinary and extraordinary…
If we let it, the extraordinary is all around us. It is in the majesty of nature, the delicacy of the leaves and blades of grass…the mountains and valleys, formed by God so long ago…We can also see it in the art and music, created by others for the enjoyment of our senses. It is present in my students, as they make connects between past and current events and the “light bulb” goes on…It can also be present in the events of life, as great men and women respond to situations as need arises. People like Martin Luther King, Jr., Rosa Parks, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Mother Theresa, and countless others who did not set out looking for greatness, but who responded to the needs of the day and time, and accomplished extraordinary things! The extraordinary is all around us, if we look for it…
Pink Land happened for me at dusk last night. Third time to the Emergency Dept. in the past 10 days with an acute, flaring allergic reaction in the form of angioedema with the potential to devolve into life-threatening anaphylaxis. No clue as to the trigger – body (immune response) out of control. No one to help me except Jesus and the clinicians. I drove there, scared, alone. The nice young valet at the ER asked me if I needed a wheelchair. As I said “no” – I noticed the exceptional pink sky – all Southern California warmth and mildness. Intensely beautiful, clearly of the Lord – in contrast to the subjective, dark fear of the clinical situation. What could I do but appreciate that moment and offer myself to Jesus? Offer the panic as a sacrifice and request that the angels protect my airway. They did and God be praised for high-dose prednisone!
What a beautiful description Sister Maxine! I have to remind myself to stop and enjoy these moments while rushing to the car to go to work, or from the office back to the car. Today as I arrived home, our house and neighbourhood were being swarmed by hundreds and hundreds of crows, what a chorus! They filled up bare branches of all the trees, and it was like one single cawing, cackling entity covering the whole area. I was tempted to rush in out of the cold but I found myself transfixed by this community of birds sharing our space. It really was incredible, and so easy to miss in the daily rush. It’s good to stop and let the transitions happen, to let that awe in.