Finding Hope and Inspiration in Everyday Miracles.

While walking in my neighborhood, I encountered a white squirrel. It ran in front of me on the sidewalk into a yard and then stopped to look at me. For me, it was a moment of disbelief. I didn’t even know white squirrels existed! I have never seen one. I was lucky enough to get a photo of it. When I got home, I looked it up. There are albino squirrels with pink eyes and white squirrels that are not albino. They exist but are extremely rare. The takeaway for me in this unusual spotting was to “expect the unexpected”.

We are experiencing a lot of culturally rare things right now. Some of which we have never seen before and, quite frankly, would prefer not to encounter. But remember, the unexpected and rare can show up in the way of a miracle, too. There are little miracles happening every day. This morning, I led a meditation with a group of people to help them find peace, feel grounded, and be receptive to the healing and love available in the present moment. The visualization had meditators connect with gold and silver energy, symbolizing sun and moon energies. One of the participants shared with me afterward that after experiencing the meditation, she felt led to open a small collection of paints she had. Unexpectedly, the colors there were gold and silver! What a pleasant surprise; to be able to paint what she had experienced in the meditation!

There are so many gifts of the present moment if we are available to them. I might have missed the white squirrel if I had been scrolling on my phone as I walked or was too busy in my head to notice what was around me. The meditation participant would have missed the pleasant surprise of having the paint colors she needed had she not been present for the “nudge” she felt after the meditation. Perhaps there are moments of hope, beauty, and inspiration that we all are missing because we are collectively quite consumed and distracted. So, how do we make ourselves more available for pleasant surprises?

It is possible through intentional, mindful living: being present in the moment and letting go of distractions when possible. I invite you to join me. Put down the phone. Look up. Look around. Connect. Know there is something magical, an unexpected everyday miracle, available for you, for all of us, when we make ourselves available for it.