I got up early this morning and when I
looked out the window, I was reminded of this brief note I wrote a while ago.
“The
mist in the air moves in slow motion over the yard as the dawn breaks. As John
Steinbeck suggested, it is the “hour of the pearl”. The magical moment before
the sun rises and time seems to pause. Every hunter, fisher, or early rising
hiker knows the moment. My favorite “pearl hours” come in the fall. Surrounded
by duck decoys with Emma at my feet, I can recall countless sunrises completely
immersed in the moment. The fragrance of swamp water and wet dog. The whistle
of duck wings and slapping water. The surreal images of cattails against the
morning sky. I am fully convinced it is this experience of being in the moment
that keeps so many of us wandering off into the wilderness. I grew up in a
family that made art and music a daily part of our lives. Not for any other
purpose but pleasure. My dad’s old-fashioned music and my mom’s handmade
decorations were intended to enrich our everyday lives. They also understood,
better than most, how important it was to see beauty in little things. Of
course, they would never lecture anybody about how to live their lives –
children excepted. Each person chooses their way. Yet they showed us how to
live in the moment. When my dad took a handful of cut hay and brought it to his
face to smell, he did not know that a half century later I would be staring at
the trees recalling that sweet summer morning and the smell of alfalfa.”
It reminded me that reflection is
comforting and valuable. This has been a hectic year for us. Weddings, moving,
elections. All the necessary things that needed doing were a distraction. Couple
that with the daily insanity of our current affairs, it has been a challenge to
find moments of solace. Thankfully, spring is coming to Wisconsin.
I am once again watching the world come to
life as the sun rises. The robins are hard at work building their nest on top
of our yard light. The family of squirrels that became homeless when we cut
down their tree found a new hollow nearby. The new flowers and shrubs Jeanette
planted around the yard are patiently making their entrance. Nature has been
generous helping me find amazement in my surroundings once again. David Mallet
in his song “Moon Upon the Left” says, “There’s a moon upon the left, there’s a
star upon the right, there’s a nightingale singing to the wondrous summer
night.” These moments can help us focus
on the simple beauty of our lives. “There’s no past, and there’s no future, only
now.” I hope Spring inspires you to feel content.
