*risk* wonder

Welcome to Tuesdays with Chel.

Once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight, or any experience that reveals the human spirit.
– e.e. cummings

A big part of wonder, of feeling awe, is opening yourself to it. RISK WONDER. Risk feeling foolish!

LET yourself be a little bowled over by that gorgeous blue sky. LET yourself marvel over a pretty flower. LET yourself feel something big, something scary, something amazing, something so beautiful it makes you want to cry. If you don’t cry, at least acknowledge that the feeling was rising in you.

Opening yourself to these emotions in reaction to something, whether it’s giant or just something really tiny, will change your life. You’ll feel them more and more, and you’ll feel them about some not so amazing things (at least that you knew of…) Commonplace things will take on a greater importance when you honor the small feelings of “wow, check this out!”

For instance, you guys know that I’m obsessive about gardening. I love my little garden. And I have seen lots of plants come and go, lots of amazing things grow, lots of flowers bloom right in front of me. But a few months ago a friend introduced me to a plant called a Passiflora. For some reason, that plant just fascinated me. To me, it looks like something that came out of Oz. I couldn’t believe that I could grow that sort of thin in my yard! So I got one, and it grew, and then it started blooming.

And trust me, everyone who knows me know about it. I posted photos on facebook. I wrote blog posts about it. I make Tom and Gracie come out and watch the new blossoms open.

And even though it sounds silly, I don’t regret it. All of that behavior has made me be totally present for the experience. I know I appreciate that beauty, that growing, the inspiration from the colors. It all made me very happy.

So, a big part of wonder, of feeling awe, is not only opening yourself to it but also allowing yourself to act a little childlike, as well.

What is the first thing that kids do when they think something is cool? They TALK about it. They marvel over it. They share (incessantly).

Last week, I saw a particularly beautiful sky one morning. I pointed it out to Tom, and figured he wasn’t too interested when he didn’t respond. But then ten minutes later, I heard *him* pointing it out to Gracie, who then came and told *me* about it. It was a small cycle, to be sure, but the fact is that wonder and awe are contagious. Maybe Gracie went to school today and pointed the sky out to her friends, and maybe one of those friends drew a picture about it or went on to tell their parents later that day…

You see where I am going with this?

If any of my neighbors heard me when my Passiflora bloomed last week, they probably assumed I was high. But I found that the “ooohing” and “aaahhhing”, the OUT LOUD “that is so amazing! look at the colors, look at those beautiful petals!”, the asking Tom (over and over) “isn’t that COOL?”, etc. made me even more invested in the experience. There was no doubt that I was feeling and experiencing something very wonderous, at least to me.

By letting go on my inhibitions, the “hey, I’m too cool for school” thing that we all seem to pick up when we hit middle school, and EXCLAIMING that I found something amazing, by loudly sharing it, I was able to open something up inside me that allowed me to fully take in the experience.

So open yourself up. Be a child. RISK WONDER! Let simple things have an affect on you. It takes some courage, letting go of this “oh, I need to keep my emotions in check so no one can get the best of me” armor that we pick up right before we hit our teens. But as you shed that tough skin, more than just wonder comes in. It’s worth the risk.

 

 

…. Bliss Habits has an assignment for *you* in this back-to-school season!

Bliss Habits will be starting up an interactive book club on the first week of October. The first book is “The Artist’s Way” by Julia Cameron. Each week, on Tuesday, we’ll be discussing one chapter of the book and then carrying the discussion into the comments and on the Bliss Habits facebook page. We’ll be sharing reactions, responses, inspiration, questions, and just generally working through the book, one chapter at a week, as a community.

I truly hope you’ll join us. It’s a great opportunity to “do” the book in a focused and organized way, and really have the benefit of a supportive community that’s along for the ride with you. Even if you’ve read it before, please consider giving us the benefit of your expertise!

It all starts October 2nd, 2012.

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Chel Micheline is a mixed-media artist, curator, writer, and avid gardener/reader/swimmer who lives in Southwest Florida with her husband and daughter. When Chel’s not making art or pondering the Bliss Habits, she’s blogging at gingerblue.com (come say hi!) or posting new things in the gingerblue etsy shop.