Martha on noticing

(Images: Martha Randy)

For several years now, I’ve begun nearly every morning outside, walking slowly around my front or back yard looking for something beautiful. When I started this practice, I thought that perhaps one day, I’d give it up, or be disappointed—but that's yet to happen. Instead, I've just become more and more amazed by all the treasures I discover.

On grey, rainy fall days, I’ve found shiny bubbles on puddles and luminous raindrops quivering on red and yellow leaves; on bitter winter mornings, I've discovered snowflake diamonds on my windshield and heart-shaped holes in the ice where salt crystals have landed. The first crocus of spring has made my heart leap and I’ve stared a huge grasshopper straight into her amazing eyes as the sun was coming up on a summer morning. My goodness, but there's an unending supply of everyday miracles to discover! Mary Oliver was on to this when she wrote in "Moths" that,

“If you notice anything,

It leads you to notice

more

and more.”

It's so true—this repeated beauty-searching has created a virtuous cycle in my life, as I greet each day expecting to be wowed, convinced that something on the other side of my front door is just waiting for me to notice how beautiful it is—and there always, always is. And I'm grateful each time I find it.