last night lina & i sat at our dinner table at home. it was a regular dinner on a regular thursday. but, something fabulous happened. we had some candles lit on the table with us as we ate, and suddenly i realized that i was wrapped up in the present moment. we squeezed out all the beauty that was possible in a regular dinner on a regular thursday. we talked. we laughed. we simply enjoyed being in each others’ company. it was a tiny bit of heaven.
swedes are good at making things special. swedes take something like dinner, and make it an event. nothing over-the-top, but something to enjoy. they make you feel welcomed, worthy, and appreciated. they prepare food from scratch, light candles, pull out a nice cup & saucer for coffee, put a flower on the table, slow down, and make a moment a little more special than it otherwise would be. hopefully, some of that attention to detail & desire to make a moment cozy & special has been rubbing off on me. i’d like to think that i have learned the art of making a moment special, of making something ordinary extraordinary.
i think this is what christians mean, what john the baptist meant, when they say “the kingdom is near”. it’s a statement that doesn’t really make sense. our world is so ugly at times. so screwed up. how can a kingdom, a world of peace, justice, & love be anywhere close to being near? how can such an ordinary world be extraordinary?
i believe that god is in the business of taking something ordinary & making it extraordinary. i believe that other religions also teach us to simply be ourselves. to know who we are, to let ourselves simply be our ordinary selves, is what makes us divine and wonderful. it is extraordinary, actually. just being true to who we are allows us to be used in ways that we could never imagine on our own. meditating, contemplating, listening to our soul, following our dreams… those things open us up to be extraordinary. they open us up to experience, see, touch, feel, hear, and create extraordinary moments in our lives & in the lives of others.
i truly believe that if we are open, aware, & willing, we can catch a glimpse of something sacred & amazing & beautiful. we can experience it every day. yes, we still wait for complete wholeness, but in the meantime, little moments of perfection find their way into our regular daily lives… if we let them.
like simply sitting at the table with my love on a thursday.
