a deserted street 🌠

When do you feel wonder and amazement?  

Earlier this week I saw a news story highlighting best times to watch the Perseid meteor shower in the northern hemisphere, along with a brief mention it may overlap that same night with viewing of the northern lights in some areas.  

Since the peak viewing would be in the middle of the night and I was already exhausted, I opened the blinds and fell asleep with the vague hope and intention that if there was something to see, I would be woken at the right time.  

When my daughter cried out a few hours later, I was sound sleep and reluctant to move.  Thankfully, my "mom guilt" came in handy. 🤣 

As I got up to go check on her, I noticed the unusual lighting outside my window. 🌌 

What followed was a middle of the night family adventure of utter wonder and amazement.  

For the next hour, we wandered our dark and deserted street, taking in the complete 360 degree panorama of light show as the colors shifted, strobed, and evolved.  Ignoring the battery warning messages on my phone, I captured picture after picture and video upon video of the beauty and majesty of the sky.  

None of the dozens of pictures or videos could capture the majesty. However, they remind and symbolize the magical feeling of the night, the gleeful expressions we made as we took in the night tapestry, and the exclamations of surprise when we caught a meteor streaking through the sky.  

In those moments, we were in a space apart.  

A moment outside of the reality of news, stress, and worry.  

An experience of connectedness to ourselves, to one another, to loved ones who have passed, and to the wider universe.

Eventually, we returned home.  I took my last picture just before stepping inside.

When I clicked on my phone to check the time a moment later, it would not respond.  

The battery had lasted exactly how long I needed it to.  

Gratitude, joy, and wonder filled me as I fell back asleep to the visual lullaby of the fading lights.  

Waking the next morning, the world had not changed.  

And I definitely had not gotten enough sleep. 😴 🤣

And yet, I felt renewed. ☀️ 

Have you had moments in your life that filled you with wonder and joy?

How have they shifted your experience?

How can you invite more spaces and opportunities for amazement, surprise, and connection?  

I believe moments like these offer fuel and renewal for the enduring labor of working to make the world more compassionate and just.  

I feel strongly that through your connection to yourself, to one another, and to the broader mysteries of the universe, you equip and sustain yourself to be a humble, and valuable, part of the larger whole.  

And I know that joy, surprise, and possibility are often elusive in the day-to-day experience of private overwhelm and public over-performance - especially if you have to labor even to be seen and appreciated in your totality. 

In this moment, and many more to come, may you experience the types of wonder, amazement, and joy that uplift and affirm you to your core.  May these moments remind you of the broader world of unexpected hope and possibility.

You matter.  You make a difference.  I'm so thankful you're here.