| Last night, as I walked to the grocery store, I listened to an episode called The Sea Around Us (#118) from the This Is Love podcast. And while the episode as a whole is about a love story, there is a portion of it dedicated to the subject of wonder. Rachel Carson, one of the people involved in this love story, and author of The Sea Around Us and Silent Spring, among other books, wrote an essay about wonder. “Where she talks about why it’s so important to our lives, because it helps you be attuned to beauty and pleasure and meaning that is outside or maybe in tension with our social ideas of what makes us happy. A social world that’s telling us: you find happiness through buying things, through getting married and buying a house; this world of consumption. And so she thinks wonder is this really important thing for us to be able to feel throughout our lives. We can remain attuned to what actually makes us happy, what actually gives us meaning, in contrast to what society tells us gives meaning.” And all I could feel, as I walked and heard those words, was a deep and resonant YES all through my body. Because this feels like a truth I have returned to time and time again through the years. The truth of the matter is, the suffering will come. If we are lucky enough to live long enough, each of us will have experiences of terrible suffering, of deep sorrow, of great loss. No matter our lot in life, we will struggle. We will suffer. But if we are lucky enough and put ourselves in the path of it often enough, we will also experience wonder. Moments when we are absolutely arrested by beauty. Overcome with joy. Awed by our good fortune in a particular moment. And I don’t know about you, but I’ve never had one of those moments while shopping on Amazon. I’m not trying to go on an anti-capitalism or anti-consumer rant here. I’m just saying that I have never felt more connected to myself, to my life, and to all life than when I’ve been out in nature. And I agree with Rachel Carson, that those moments of connection, or of wonder are really, really important to help us stay “attuned to beauty and pleasure and meaning.” It felt like perfect time to listen to this particular podcast because I’m about to go on a backpacking trip in the Tetons. Backpacking combines two of my favorite activities, hiking and camping, and like peanut butter and chocolate, the combination and brings out the best in each one, in my opinion. Hiking along trails that would be hard to reach if only doing a day hike. Camping in places almost no one else ever camps. Spending an entire day exploring, then getting to do it again the next day. That particular form of exhaustion that only comes from a day spent entirely outside. The way everything tastes better under an open sky. The quiet that seeps into my brain after a few days without the internet. Opportunities to experience wonder abound. I know backpacking isn’t for everyone. And I’m not trying to talk anyone into it. (The fewer people who backpack, the easier/better/more enjoyable it is for me.) I’m just saying that when I’m out in nature is where I most easily connect with my sense of wonder. And that’s why I make backpacking a priority in my life. But I’m curious. Where do you feel wonder? How do you attune to beauty and pleasure and meaning in your life? And are you making that connection a priority? It feels like it might be important for all of us, in whatever ways we can. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Until next time, Theresa |
