Quote Week: Day #1

Today's Photo: "Yellow"

"Our task is to say a holy yes to the real things of our life." - Natalie Goldberg

Real things. Yes. There are a lot of those in our everyday lives. Laundry, grocery shopping, showering, bills, tears, arguments, laughter, microwaved meals.

We all say "yes" to these real parts of life constantly. But I wonder what it means to say a "holy yes" - I guess it probably means being open to experiencing the sacredness of everyday life.

Last night I finally finished the novel "The Book Thief." I know. It took me forever. I was savoring it. But, I knew last night I needed to finish it and move along to other pages of words, to tackling other chapters and other authors.

Reading that last page, with emotions overflowing like a flood, was a sort of holy moment for me. This summer was a strange one. Beautiful. But quite odd; it was filled up with a range of experiences. It was a hike with some deep, deep valleys and a number of breath-taking peaks. "The Book Thief" was my companion this summer. She came along with me on road trips, to afternoons in the sun at my favorite park in Chicago, on an airplane to an interview, to a new home in a new state.

I said a "holy yes" to the book last night. A "holy yes" to the end of one novel, and the start of another.

And it felt scary. It felt exhilarating. Then I closed the book. And fell asleep. I love and I hate the last pages of books.

We wake up every day to a world brimming with opportunities to say "yes" to all the holiness wrapped up in all the ordinary. A holy yes. May we remember to breathe deeply every page and every chapter of this extraordinarily ordinary life.