The Miracle of Ordinary
The beach, Wheatley Provincial Park
“The miracle is not to walk on water but on the earth.”*
I am ordinary.
I have an ordinary life stuffed full to the brim with ordinary cares, ordinary works, ordinary talent, ordinary interests, ordinary sorrows and ordinary joys. And I love my life.
Yellow Lotus (Nelumbo lutea)
Retail advertisements, print and social media, influencers, celebrities and sports heroes all combine to popularise and extol extraordinary lives. North American society compels us to believe that ordinary is not enough. That puts a lot of pressure on us to be special in some way, which can lead to obsession and unsound striving.
Hillman Marsh
I am ordinary and I am fine with that label. But that hasn’t always been true. As a young woman I loathed ordinary. The notion of being labelled as ordinary was very upsetting to me and I wasted a lot of energy and time (years, even) trying very hard to be something more than. Something I was never meant to be. I was meant for ordinary and that is a good thing.
Black Willow Beach, Point Pelee NP
Instead, and for many happy years now, I’ve been striving to enjoy every moment exactly as it is: The chores - cooking, cleaning, laundry and gardening. And the activities - watching the Jays, hiking, paddling, swimming, cycling, and, of course, photography. Living each moment as it arises, unadorned or improved, has given me a much fuller feeling of contentment.
Observation Deck, Wheatley PP
Ordinary is where contentment resides.
I am ordinary. And I am content.
Spatterdock or Yellow Water Lily (Nuphar lutea)
“The miracle is not to walk on water but on the earth.”*
Mindful breathing is an elemental form of meditation and the first that I learned many years ago. Make no mistake, this practice is no less powerful because of its simplicity! This meditation focuses your full attention on breathing—inhale, hold, exhale, hold. Its simple serenity makes it perfect for park visits where I use it regularly. Sitting on my proverbial cushion (actually a blanket on a picnic table) this week, practicing mindful breathing, the rhythmic movement of air through my body felt like a miracle. It was a miracle! Indeed, I believe that all of the senses - smelling, tasting, seeing, feeling, and hearing - are miracles. The miracle is to walk on the earth…
At sunset or at dawn, wandering through the seasoned woods at Point Pelee, or on the dyke at Hillman Marsh, or beside one of the ponds at Wheatley - feeling in harmony with nature - it is not difficult for me to see the ordinary as a miracle. The scent of mature cedars, the call of the cuckoo, the beauty of wildflowers, the majesty of the herons and egrets - each one very ordinary, each one a miracle.
I am ordinary, I live a most ordinary life, chock-a-block with many ordinary moments that fair sparkle as if with fairy dust.
The Marsh Boardwalk, Point Pelee NP
’Til next time, y’all…
*Thich Nhat Hanh (Thích Nhất Hạnh), Buddhist, Monk, activist, teacher and author.
Couture Dyke (and "Egret Tree"), Hillman Marsh
