Reading this article gave me a "cherish" moment. Thank you, Susan, for this gift.
Also, last year I've been catching myself at a new feeling. I call it nostalgia for a present moment. I feel nostalgic for something that is still happening but with a clear understanding - its not forever, it will come to the end and I'll move on. These moments are so bittersweet and beautiful. I think they are expressions of my way of cherishing life as it is and my own journey.
Dear Susan thank you so much for the Church of Quiet, when I read your posts I am always reawakened to the extraordinary in the ordinary of everyday life …Beautiful blessings of quietness and depth for 2025 xxx
Susan, thank you...as is so often the case, your straightforward, honest and non-preachy approach touched my heart and got me to thinking. Our first reactions are often the truest reflections of our hearts. Mine, after reading this post was to resolve to find and see a production of Our Town. Only this time, it won't be as a teenager with an essay about the play looming over my head. Rather, to see and experience a beautiful and thoughtful play in a way that loops into creating a cherished memory.
I love this poem! Thank you for sharing, Susan. For your questions: yes to all. Most days I do strive to stay in the moment and cherish this life of mine (my female Golden Retriever sitting next to me during my meditation [and insisting on "lovin's" while I meditate]; the softness of my male Golden Retriever's fur when he's eating out of my hand; the glorious sunrises on clear days; my irreplaceable two hours of quiet and solitude each morning during tea time). The list could go on, but also, the list is too long for the times I allow absurdness to distract me (my husband's lackadaisical attitude towards housecleaning; the dishes piled in the sink - again; the house repairs/updates that haven't been completed yet).
For 2025 and beyond, I hope to truly embrace and cherish the "annoyances" because in the grand scheme, I'm lucky to have such perceived problems.
Happy New Year to all here! May it be the best year yet!
Beautiful, Susan, and an important reminder. I try to cherish each moment, the joyful and the painful....all part of the package. I try to appreciate each feeling, even the ones that hurt, as I remind myself that there will be plenty of time to not feel once we are no longer here. Being older now brings priorities more into focus, with the reality of mortality reminding me.
Thanks, Susan. Those very lines from Our Town rattled me long ago when I first saw Our Town. I’m a bit of a stalker in love with life that I fear, like Emily, I might have difficulty letting go of Life. And thanks for Howe’s poem.
This post is beautiful. I beat myself for mistakes all the time and endlessly perseverate on the things I hate about myself--my body, lack of discipline, occasional avoidance of difficult or uncomfortable things, etc. A lot of my shame is around all the experiences I feel I missed out on due to my shyness, anxiety, or desire for comfort. I worry that I'm not living enough of my life. But im trying, and I'm doing things. And I sometimes have glimpses of a world where that's good enough.
I do! I cherish life a lot, I‘ve been given such a wonderful present. I cherish it even more since I’ve left two very difficult periods behind me: ten years of terrible headaches, which, miraculously were healed ten years ago; and a depression, which also went away. Now I know even more how precious the present is. Being open for the moment has given me so many great experiences!
I‘d like to share one from a few days ago: that was on the underground train. It was crowded, only one seat was left, opposite me. An elderly man approached it, he pulled with him a big oxygen machine. So I got up to make place for him and the machine. But he beckoned me to sit down again, put himself and the machine on one seat and said: „There is space for everyone on this earth. Give them space in your heart and mind and then there will be place in reality, too.“ I was thrilled by his exceptional aura. We struck up a conversation - for short 15 minutes, but they were so rich! He told me about his philosophy of love for humanity; I asked him about his wisdom. He had come from far away and traveled the world and met all kinds of religions. From the best of every one of them he had distilled poetry which he quoted to me in English. He was a greater teacher in a few minutes than any teacher at school.
It was such an enchanting moment - which happened in the most prosaic context. Only when he got off the train did I realise that I was on an overcrowded train during rush hour.
Have a great time with many prosaic-magic moments!
I love it! When I first retired, I thought I needed to do something profound. I was very anxious and unhappy. Poems like this helped me understand this is “living”: taking care of grandchildren, knitting, hiking, walking, birding, watching documentaries, foreign mysteries, cooking, cleaning, ….contentment. Days that are calm.
That’s one of my favorite poems and it was so sweet to get to read it again today. I’ve read it in great grief and even copied it by hand to share with a friend before. Thanks for the reminder ❤️
Today I cherish that I survived a heart event, despite overlooked symptoms, test delays, I advocated for myself, called the paramedics, rode in an ambulance to professionals who paid attention. For that I am grateful. And today I released the drama and heartache of having been discounted, ignored and that I survived! Today I smile and enjoy the sun, my beating heart and know to stand firm and insist on life. What is here now is perspective and gratitude. Amen.
I love this! At times (often, actually), I feel more like a human doing than a human being. I am betting many others feel this way, too. Busyness is frequently an excuse to avoid going deeper within oneself. I try as often as I can to enjoy a life of beauty and introspection by spending lots of time in nature, my native plant garden, or reading.
Reading this article gave me a "cherish" moment. Thank you, Susan, for this gift.
Also, last year I've been catching myself at a new feeling. I call it nostalgia for a present moment. I feel nostalgic for something that is still happening but with a clear understanding - its not forever, it will come to the end and I'll move on. These moments are so bittersweet and beautiful. I think they are expressions of my way of cherishing life as it is and my own journey.
a favorite, loved poem of mine
it moves me each time I pass through its words
thank you
Dear Susan thank you so much for the Church of Quiet, when I read your posts I am always reawakened to the extraordinary in the ordinary of everyday life …Beautiful blessings of quietness and depth for 2025 xxx
Susan, thank you...as is so often the case, your straightforward, honest and non-preachy approach touched my heart and got me to thinking. Our first reactions are often the truest reflections of our hearts. Mine, after reading this post was to resolve to find and see a production of Our Town. Only this time, it won't be as a teenager with an essay about the play looming over my head. Rather, to see and experience a beautiful and thoughtful play in a way that loops into creating a cherished memory.
I love this poem! Thank you for sharing, Susan. For your questions: yes to all. Most days I do strive to stay in the moment and cherish this life of mine (my female Golden Retriever sitting next to me during my meditation [and insisting on "lovin's" while I meditate]; the softness of my male Golden Retriever's fur when he's eating out of my hand; the glorious sunrises on clear days; my irreplaceable two hours of quiet and solitude each morning during tea time). The list could go on, but also, the list is too long for the times I allow absurdness to distract me (my husband's lackadaisical attitude towards housecleaning; the dishes piled in the sink - again; the house repairs/updates that haven't been completed yet).
For 2025 and beyond, I hope to truly embrace and cherish the "annoyances" because in the grand scheme, I'm lucky to have such perceived problems.
Happy New Year to all here! May it be the best year yet!
Beautiful, Susan, and an important reminder. I try to cherish each moment, the joyful and the painful....all part of the package. I try to appreciate each feeling, even the ones that hurt, as I remind myself that there will be plenty of time to not feel once we are no longer here. Being older now brings priorities more into focus, with the reality of mortality reminding me.
Agree completely about being older bringing priorities into focus.
Just beautiful. Thank you.
Thanks, Susan. Those very lines from Our Town rattled me long ago when I first saw Our Town. I’m a bit of a stalker in love with life that I fear, like Emily, I might have difficulty letting go of Life. And thanks for Howe’s poem.
This post is beautiful. I beat myself for mistakes all the time and endlessly perseverate on the things I hate about myself--my body, lack of discipline, occasional avoidance of difficult or uncomfortable things, etc. A lot of my shame is around all the experiences I feel I missed out on due to my shyness, anxiety, or desire for comfort. I worry that I'm not living enough of my life. But im trying, and I'm doing things. And I sometimes have glimpses of a world where that's good enough.
I recommend Ann Patchett's recent book Tom Lake, which features Our Town, and whose themes she builds into the book. Wonderful!
Thanks for that. I love Patchett’s work. She tracks wonder.
I do! I cherish life a lot, I‘ve been given such a wonderful present. I cherish it even more since I’ve left two very difficult periods behind me: ten years of terrible headaches, which, miraculously were healed ten years ago; and a depression, which also went away. Now I know even more how precious the present is. Being open for the moment has given me so many great experiences!
I‘d like to share one from a few days ago: that was on the underground train. It was crowded, only one seat was left, opposite me. An elderly man approached it, he pulled with him a big oxygen machine. So I got up to make place for him and the machine. But he beckoned me to sit down again, put himself and the machine on one seat and said: „There is space for everyone on this earth. Give them space in your heart and mind and then there will be place in reality, too.“ I was thrilled by his exceptional aura. We struck up a conversation - for short 15 minutes, but they were so rich! He told me about his philosophy of love for humanity; I asked him about his wisdom. He had come from far away and traveled the world and met all kinds of religions. From the best of every one of them he had distilled poetry which he quoted to me in English. He was a greater teacher in a few minutes than any teacher at school.
It was such an enchanting moment - which happened in the most prosaic context. Only when he got off the train did I realise that I was on an overcrowded train during rush hour.
Have a great time with many prosaic-magic moments!
I love it! When I first retired, I thought I needed to do something profound. I was very anxious and unhappy. Poems like this helped me understand this is “living”: taking care of grandchildren, knitting, hiking, walking, birding, watching documentaries, foreign mysteries, cooking, cleaning, ….contentment. Days that are calm.
If you don’t cherish your life, there’s no real point to any of it, is there?
That’s one of my favorite poems and it was so sweet to get to read it again today. I’ve read it in great grief and even copied it by hand to share with a friend before. Thanks for the reminder ❤️
Today I cherish that I survived a heart event, despite overlooked symptoms, test delays, I advocated for myself, called the paramedics, rode in an ambulance to professionals who paid attention. For that I am grateful. And today I released the drama and heartache of having been discounted, ignored and that I survived! Today I smile and enjoy the sun, my beating heart and know to stand firm and insist on life. What is here now is perspective and gratitude. Amen.
I love this! At times (often, actually), I feel more like a human doing than a human being. I am betting many others feel this way, too. Busyness is frequently an excuse to avoid going deeper within oneself. I try as often as I can to enjoy a life of beauty and introspection by spending lots of time in nature, my native plant garden, or reading.