Pray!
To address God with adoration, confession, supplication, or thanksgiving.
There isn’t a single sunrise or sunset that I don’t give thanks after watching. Sunrise over a mountain, up from the sea or just in my backyard. Ohh the possibilities ahead.
Is there such a thing as a lousy sunset? Helios pulls the sun into the west and the light begins to change. Can you feel that moment of calm spreading over you? Even on a cloudy day, stop and breathe. And if it’s raining, appreciate the rain. It’s April showers that bring May flowers.
Stop. And listen. Can you hear something?
Can you feel a deep love and respect?
I Confess.
Many people associate confession with an admission of a moral or legal wrong. And very few amongst us can cast the first stone.
But confession is not necessarily a bad or negative thing. Getting something off your shoulders makes you feel better. Did you know it also makes you look ten years younger and twenty pounds lighter? Praying uses more calories than pilates…maybe.
I confess I do not need to plunge from a bridge on the end of an oversized rubber band. Or leap from a perfectly good airplane. There is nothing “wrong” with that.
What about the confession of love? Where would Harlequin Romance be without those?
Confession of faith is a positive thing. Traveling shows us the pretty and not so pretty of our world. I confess the more I see, the more I stand in awe. I pray I can share some of that with you.
I Ask.
Humbly and earnestly I ask you to appreciate your world. From the mountains to the prairies, and yes, the oceans white with foam. But not just the planet itself, but the people who inhabit it. At the end of the day, we are all passengers on the same express, hurtling towards our destination.
Visit religious sites, and not just of your religion, but those of others. Learn the fundamentals. I’m not asking you to convert, but see if there are any similarities with your own. Say a little prayer.
If not, appreciate the architecture. If that doesn’t make you feel humble, you may want to check for a pulse.
Thanks For The Memories.
We take the world and our time upon it for granted. Jonathan Larson reminds us there are five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes in a year. Or 1,440 minutes a day. Of those, how many do you use looking at a bird, clouds floating by, or a wave crashing? 2-3 minutes? Do you appreciate it enough?
Do you ever stop and smell the coffee, flowers, mama’s family sauce bubbling on the stove?
Did you appreciate that croissant at breakfast? Did you even taste that salad at lunch or auto-eat it while looking at the computer or phone? There are millions of people who will never see, let alone sample a croissant or salad.
So, 2-3 minutes for looking, another 2-3 for smelling and 30 minutes for eating? 36 minutes out of 1,440. That’s less than 3%. Tell me we do not appreciate things nearly enough.
Do you appreciate that you have “today” to appreciate?
STOP! Taste, touch, smell, hear and look at your world.
I pray you will eat and love. Love yourself and everyone else.
And say to yourself, what a wonderful world.
“See Nafplio” Continued on Page T8 “Taste Bordeaux” Continued on T14