Are You Wondrous?

Well are you? Meaning, in this moment, are you filled with the wonder of all the possibilities that exist? Is your focus totally in the present, just being with “what is” so that you may truly receive the gift of “the now?” If you are not, then what are you?

Could you get yourself into that wondrous state? How could you take your mind off all thoughts that make you “other than wondrous” and focus on the excitement and novelty of everything in this moment? What would you see that you would otherwise miss? How would the possibilities for creating something new and fantastic multiply?

Wow! That was a lot of questions in a row. Maybe it got you thinking about the state that you are in now. Hopefully it has shifted to wonder. If it has, great! Keep it up. If not, you may be thinking that this is stupid or childish. Perfect! I was just looking online for advice on how to act like a five-year-old.

When I was five, I would go around in people’s houses asking all sorts of questions about what things were, why and how they worked. I was always in awe of the newness of everything. People would tell my parents how curious and smart I was, just because I was wondrous. I want to be five again!

As a five-year-old, people were interesting to me because I got to get to know them. I had no preconception of who they were or how I should interact with them. I was just thrilled to have the opportunity to get to know them and to tell them a little about the things I found exciting. No one was boring. Even when people would not engage with me in a playful manner, I was still in awe. I found it really interesting wondering why they were like that.

I particularly enjoyed the challenge of inventing or creating things. It was amazing how many raw materials I had at my disposal that would keep me occupied for hours. My toys were really cheap! Water was amazing to play with. Anything that slid or rolled was enthralling. Give me a shovel and send me to the pile of snow at the end of the street and I was good until it got dark. I didn’t care if I was wet, dirty, chilly, rosy-cheeked or alone. I was having oodles of fun unabashedly exploring and interacting with my world.

So, when did things stop being wondrous? I think it began when I started to think too much. And then I started to know too much. Then the things I knew replaced the real experience. Since I already knew what something was like, or at least I thought I did, I would not bother to explore it any further. I just labelled it as something I already knew pulled out my memory of that experience and that was it. This allowed me to shift my thoughts and energy to something else, like possibly something I would rather be doing.

As I sit here writing this, I wonder how I drained all the wonder out of my life? Well, I actually know. I just described it above. But what I notice today is that the majority of my day is no longer spent with the same level of awe and amazement that I used to enjoy years ago. And now I want it back!

So, I am henceforth committing to myself to become more wondrous. If my answer to the question that is the title of this article is “No”, I will shift my focus to the aspects in each moment that arouse my curiosity, amazement and fascination. I will encourage myself to be in a perpetual state of wonder, just like when I was five.

So, why not be wondrous? It’s not childish; it’s child-like. Best of all, it pulls in the flavour of your soul to whatever you are experiencing in the moment. Are you wondrous? I hope so!