To Find the Extraordinary
Smile gratefully on the ordinary
--
To find the extraordinary
smile gratefully on the ordinary.
Even the simplest moment, lived with awareness,
guides our steps to a better place.
To an artist a pencil, a carrot, a cat’s whisker
suggest form and color worthy of art.
We too can immerse our senses and our minds
in the beauty around us, hiding in plain sight.
The coolness of a pillow case when you first lay down your head.
The crunch of your footsteps on a new crust of snow.
The sweet juice of a ripe peach dripping down your chin.
The smell and sizzle of summer rain pelting the thirsty ground.
So common. So enriching.
So quotidian. So sublime.
The extraordinary swathed in the ordinary,
waiting to be unwrapped.
A shout out to Marlane Ainsworth for her recent essay on the importance of everyday things!
If you liked this poem (and Marlane’s essay) you might also enjoy this poem which I wrote a while ago:
