After the Clock Strikes Twelve

After a Cinderella kind of day and an ideal weekend at "The Oasis" at my little home away from home, I hear the clock striking twelve. The spell is running out of magic. Soon I will have to race back home to resume life as I know it.

Friday was the culmination of two weeks of intentional living. Prior to those two weeks, I wrote down a list of what I missed about my daycaring days. Routine, being outdoors, a state of perpetual motion, a menu of relatively balanced meals, quiet time and looking at the world through the eyes of a child are just a few that pop to mind. Then there are the "heaven on earth" moments as I watched children contentedly playing amongst themselves with no awareness of my presence.

Taking in the wonders of the world around me still brings back a sense of awe within my regularly scheduled life. My newly developed habit of going for a morning walk has reawakened a part of myself I have missed. 

After walking with the rabbits first thing in the morning, coming upon an industrious little ant on my way out the door, spotting a family of geese on my way to my boss' home (they were still in the same spot when I drove home) and some yellow-headed blackbirds perched atop the cattails in the slough beside the geese I felt intoxicated with wonder and let myself feel the ahh-someness of each and every moment.

I arrived at my little oasis on the prairie which is surrounded by trees and birds that night. I was still in a Disney Princess mode when I woke up the next morning. I puttered through the morning under the spell that had been cast upon me when I noticed one of Mother Nature's creatures perched atop my car outside, peeking in the window watching ME:

 

There are a lot of mourning doves in the area and I wistfully hoped it was a mourning dove peeking in on me because it seemed there could be an other worldly significance to that idea. My son brought me down to earth with a crash when he asked if it may have been a prairie chicken which according to Google images is more likely.

What kind of bird it was doesn't really matter. The idea of Mother Nature's creatures watching me watch them held more significance. The rabbits I followed were well aware of my presence as they watched my every move. The Canada geese on the side of the rode froze in their tracks the moment I stopped the car to take a picture. 

I love waking up in this forested little oasis on the prairie. Robins are my alarm clock; Canada geese have joined in with the robins on occasion; mourning doves are the snooze button; followed up by the sounds of grackles if I stay in bed too long.

Yes, I feel like a Disney Princess. I feel like I'm living a scene right out of Cinderella.

The clock is striking twelve as I type and I feel these heaven-on-earth moments slipping through my fingertips as I type. Back to the real word of work and deadlines is looming. 

By holding onto the wonder filled moments as I walk back into life as I know it, maybe I can remain grounded as I face the workload of the days ahead. I'll hold onto the one remaining glass slipper to remind me the sense of "ahhh" is still within me. I just have to keep living with intention and remind myself to stop, look and listen to the world outside my doors. 

Welcome to Monday. The day when many of us must step back into our regular work schedule after a period of rejuvenation. May you seek for and find small moments of ahhh-someness within your day.