surprise
The northern lights were seen all over the US last weekend. From Washington to Florida, brushstrokes of pinks, reds, greens, purples and blues came to life in the night sky. On my flight home from New York on Saturday night, I hoped that if I sat in the window seat, I too might get a glimpse of the ethereal magic. But no such luck. Instead, I watched episode after episode of Below Deck on Bravo. Entertaining? Definitely. Magical? Not so much.
When I got home from the airport after a quick trip to attend a memorial service for my cousin on Long Island, it was 1:30 in the morning. I felt sad, tenderized, thankful to have been together with family and happy to be home.
It had been a sad but beautiful day. And the trees! The trees were popping! Purple Wisteria, fluffy, pink Cherry Blossoms, sweet-smelling Lilacs, I was beside myself. I also noticed a familiar feeling percolating; a message that springs up from time to time reminding me that our relationships are everything. Spending time worrying about much else is useless because so much of it is out of our control. Our relationships with the people we love however, always deserve our attention, acceptance, and unconditional love.
When I slipped into bed, grateful to be back in one of my favorite places on earth next to one of my favorite humans, I thought to myself that while it would have been amazing to see the northern lights, it was enough to know they were out there and that someone was being treated to such an extraordinary and miraculous show.
The week prior, my daughter declared at breakfast, “This week is taking forever”. It was Tuesday. And she’s 8.
But I didn’t disagree. She was right because life can be a lot.
And here we are.
Relieved. Grateful. Curious.
As a family member I love very much recovers from major surgery and my friends celebrate their children’s graduations from middle school, high school, and college, I am keenly aware of the strange and bittersweet passing of time. At the middle school awards ceremony the other day, inside the gym on the bleachers in front of me was a woman petting something in her lap. Upon further investigation, I saw whiskers and a cute wriggling nose. There in attendance was a bunny on a leash. I’m not sure if the owner of the bunny pulled her out of a hat or not but it still felt like a message; Magic exists and is often right in front of our own wriggling noses.