Sacred…inspiring awe or reverence among believers in a given set of spiritual ideas.

“The sacred is in the ordinary…it is to be found in one’s daily life, in one’s neighbors, friends, and family, in one’s own backyard…travel may be a flight from confronting the sacred–this lesson can be easily lost. To be looking elsewhere for miracles is to me a sure sign of ignorance that everything is miraculous.”   -Abraham Harold Maslow

Finding the Sacred in the Ordinary—

SILENCE: I recently heard a podcast where inmates were being interviewed & asked what physical comfort they missed most. All sorts of ideas circled in my mind thinking their answer would be sex, a favorite food, etc. The answer…Silence. It truly struck me. I had never even thought of that, how we take for granted a fleeting moment of silence or don’t truly understand how accessible this gift truly is and we don’t utilize it like we should. We have every opportunity to turn off the television, quiet the children with calming words held within a book, can go beyond our personal limitations through moments of meditation & we choose to fill our days with noise. It struck me & has made me think twice when the whirls of media chime into my life. I am going to take back those moments & remember the gift of silence.

LOVE: finding the love even when the love seems to be hidden. I came across this quote that made me think…“It is inbred in us that we have to do exceptional things for God: but we have not. We have to be exceptional in the ordinary things, to be holy in mean streets, among mean people, and this is not learned in five minutes.”  -Oswald Chambers        I live in a predominately one religion neighborhood & my small family does not join in, so we often feel left alone. I have found that in order to be able to find a small piece of love we have to go out of our way to send it by doing small acts of service—taking cookies, leaving inspirational Cd’s, little tokens of kindness to have a connection in some way.      It is easy to find sacred moments when you are serving some kind of LOVE in some small way.

CAPTURE IT! You can find something beautiful if you look to capture it!! Look at everything like you are seeking to capture a moment with a fluttering butterfly—it is there and gone within a moment. You will not see anything if you don’t seek it. When you are outside even for a moment look for some small detail that captures you!! It stikes a moment of awe, it draws you for a closer look. Stop, take out your camera (most people these days have them on their phones) and capture it!! I have done this many times on my daily walks. I look for anything that draws me in, a leaf in the shape of a heart, a bird nest, a rain drop on a leaf, tree bark patterns, the whimsical poppies that dance in the wind, on and on. Nature is just one place to look—can you find tiny details within your home, your day?? Can you capture a sweet smile, does your cup of coffee seem to hold a sacred moment for your day. There are moments to capture all around you…find the sacred within them.

LITTLE THINGS: We can find the sacred in the small things that bring us joy, like the comfort of a cozy blanket, sitting on a warm heater vent, appreciating the warm flow of a shower, picking out beautiful strawberries that are in abundance, enjoying fresh, clean water, so many small details of little things we are gifted each day.

FAMILY: “Our most basic instinct is not for survival but for family. Most of us would give our own life for the survival of a family member, yet we lead our daily life too often as if we take our family for granted.”  -Paul Pearshall    Our families should be one of our most sacred gifts. We should strive to fill their days with gratitude and appreciation for the love that is shared.

The sacred things you hold are held in the eyes of the beholder. What you see sacred becomes sacred, what you feel is sacred becomes inspiring, what creates awe and wonder through your lenses is what will hold your attention and help you to find the sacred in the every day ordinary. Best wishes on your journey to find the small, ordinary things that will make each day beautiful, blessed…sacred.

Lots of love and awe inspired moments.  -Heather