Last weekend I went to see two shows. First was Missy Reno Smith, a medium/psychic I had on my radio show last week. It was amazing. She was talking to the dead relatives of folks in the audience. Of course, I didn’t want to believe it was real, but she knew too many personal details of strangers to deny something supernatural was going on. I was awed.
I then headed over to WCCO’s John Williams conversation with Teddy Roosevelt. Clay Jenkins, the man who plays Teddy, was so convincing and so knowledgeable about Roosevelt’s life that I was in awe again.
It felt good to be awed; it happens so rarely. But when it does, it reminds you there is still so much to learn and experience. We often get mired in the mundane—political ads, bad weather and credit card debt. But it doesn’t always take a conversation with dead people to snap you back into the world of the amazing. Sometimes you just need to talk to your kids.
A while ago while lying in bed with the kids, my oldest said, “You know what’s amazing? Streets.” (I kept quiet, hoping this is going somewhere.) “And food stores. I mean, how do they get all that food in there for us? And faucets. And the fact that water comes out of the faucet! That’s amazing! Mom, sometimes when I’m riding the bus home from school, I just look out the window and think how amazing this world is, and we’re so lucky to have so many amazing things.”
Wow.
Her awe was awe-inspiring.
I’ve spent the latter part of my life on that journey to remember to be grateful for every breath, to live in the moment, to know that happiness is not getting what you want but wanting what you have. And here she is, my pint-sized Yoda, appreciating faucets!
We, as a society spend billions on therapy: Ekhart Tolle books, Deepak Chopra pod-casts, and Oprah Sirius Radio all remind us (to quote ‘The Secret’) to “have an attitude of gratitude.” But the kids are living it. Maybe when I was younger, I was living it, too—but it sometimes gets lost along the way.
To renew my awe, I needed to see a woman to talk to dead people and a long past president to resurrect and give a speech (boy, am I out of “awe” practice).
Yes, faucets are amazing, and streets, and food stores! And technology, and this warm bed, and Halloween candy—everything. But mostly you, baby girl—you are amazing, and I’m grateful for the shared moment when you reminded me of the valuable lesson of awe and gratitude.
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