Child-Like Wonder and Awe

When my daughter Sarah was a toddler she would often point from her pushchair and cry ‘Moo! Moo! Moo!’ delightedly. It took me a while to work out just what she was so joyful about. My first thought was that she was seeing cows. Or hallucinating cows as we were living in the unending rhythm of terraced housing. But no. She had seen the moon. No one else had seen the moon, clear in the daytime sky. I saw dust and danger and dog poo. She saw the moon and was amazed and awed.

Viewing the world from a child-like perspective changes our surroundings. Changes our attitudes and changes ourselves. Turns the ordinary into the extraordinary. As we mature what used to be amazing becomes mundane. Yet it is very possible to switch our lens and rediscover child-like wonder and awe. All we have to do is look, smell, feel or listen. Even better - do all of those.

Today, whilst I write, I’m drinking a cup of hot chocolate. Nothing extraordinary or awesome about that. But I can turn it into something special. By wondering why the little bubbles make that pattern. By tasting it slowly and experiencing how my tongue picks up the flavours in different places. By feeling the warmth in my hands. By being so happy that I have hot chocolate in my favorite mug.

So, simply look at, feel, smell, taste, listen to something from a child-like perspective. Feel the awe and the joy. It’s up to you if you want to say ‘Moo!’. I think I will.