Appreciating the Little Things
I was watching a news story about the prison system yesterday and one of the inmates being interviewed said, "You miss the little things. I haven't seen a tree in years. Literally. In years."
I've thought a lot about his words. I see hundreds of trees everyday, yet I don't know if I ever stop to think, there is a tree. I take for granted that each time I drive home, the trees will still be there. Only if someone were to cut them down, would I probably notice and wonder where all of the trees went.
It's a shame that I am not more aware of the small blessings in my life. It seems like I hit the ground running most days, and by the time I head for home, I am emotionally and physically spent. My mind is focused on what to make for dinner and how many loads of laundry I can get done before I fall into bed.
Another example to illustrate my point. One of the eeriest things about 9/11 was the lack of aircraft in the air. I live near a major airport, and on any given day (or night) can literally count 10-15 planes in the air overhead at a time. I have lived there so long that I don't even hear them anymore. But ofter 9/11 and all planes were grounded, the silence over my home was deafening. I cannot tell you how disconcerting it was to look up in the sky and see nothing but clouds. THIS was how I knew something really big had happened in my world. Seeing the planes each day for years was a constant. It was only once they were no longer there that a part of me woke up and confronted a new reality. I can remember my husband and I driving to the airport just so we could see rows and rows of planes sitting there, silent.
I think a lot of things in life are like this. We see things so often we fail to appreciate how lucky we are to be able to do so. I think of the prisoner who, in spite of all the things he doesn't have, misses seeing trees the most.
I want to see more trees in my life. I want to turn off my radio, roll down my windows and listen to the birds and dogs as I drive by. I want my cell phone to ring and not answer it because I am busy admiring someones immaculate lawn and flowerbeds.
How sad it is that something has to disappear before we realize it was there in the first place.
Today is a new day and the trees are waiting.
I've thought a lot about his words. I see hundreds of trees everyday, yet I don't know if I ever stop to think, there is a tree. I take for granted that each time I drive home, the trees will still be there. Only if someone were to cut them down, would I probably notice and wonder where all of the trees went.
It's a shame that I am not more aware of the small blessings in my life. It seems like I hit the ground running most days, and by the time I head for home, I am emotionally and physically spent. My mind is focused on what to make for dinner and how many loads of laundry I can get done before I fall into bed.
Another example to illustrate my point. One of the eeriest things about 9/11 was the lack of aircraft in the air. I live near a major airport, and on any given day (or night) can literally count 10-15 planes in the air overhead at a time. I have lived there so long that I don't even hear them anymore. But ofter 9/11 and all planes were grounded, the silence over my home was deafening. I cannot tell you how disconcerting it was to look up in the sky and see nothing but clouds. THIS was how I knew something really big had happened in my world. Seeing the planes each day for years was a constant. It was only once they were no longer there that a part of me woke up and confronted a new reality. I can remember my husband and I driving to the airport just so we could see rows and rows of planes sitting there, silent.
I think a lot of things in life are like this. We see things so often we fail to appreciate how lucky we are to be able to do so. I think of the prisoner who, in spite of all the things he doesn't have, misses seeing trees the most.
I want to see more trees in my life. I want to turn off my radio, roll down my windows and listen to the birds and dogs as I drive by. I want my cell phone to ring and not answer it because I am busy admiring someones immaculate lawn and flowerbeds.
How sad it is that something has to disappear before we realize it was there in the first place.
Today is a new day and the trees are waiting.