A Thousand Moments

"Food for the body is not enough.

There must be food for the soul."

DOROTHY DAY

Someone recently posed the writing prompt, What's in your hand? For me today it's a notebook covered in a gorgeous floral design. I'm smitten with the colours. A summer garden. It caught my eye during a recent browse in the conservatory gift shop we visited a few weeks ago. I certainly don't need another notebook for my not so secret stash in the desk drawer. So I laid it back down—reluctantly. I circled back, scooped up two copies and beelined for the checkout. Already I knew one would be for myself and one for a dear writing friend.

In my note when giving it to her, I mentioned being inspired by Nigel Slater's newest memoir A Thousand Feasts, Small moments of joy...a memoir of sorts. I liked his idea of recording those small moments that feed the soul like a feast. These notebooks could be perfect for jotting such moments. My friend liked the idea and mentioned that Nigel's title reminded her of another book One Thousand Gifts, A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp. Oh yes, it was quite popular and enjoyed by many, including myself, when it came out years ago.

I wondered how many other books shared a similar title. A quick search listed a handful, including Mary Oliver's collection of poetry A Thousand Mornings and Zondervan's The Book of a Thousand Prayers. Plus, a third book I've neither read nor heard of called Morning Coffee Reflection - 1000 Things to Think About. A thousand of anything enlivens the imagination and creates a sense of expanse. And I began to wonder what it might be like to curate such a collection as a thousand gifts, a thousand feasts, never mind a thousand mornings or a thousand prayers. I'd want to dip into such collections - what treasures they would hold.

It reminds me of the time decades ago when I began writing a gratitude journal, where I wrote down five things every evening of whatever I felt grateful for in that day. This little habit changed my life in such a positive way. I began to pay attention. I began being more grateful for the many things that came my way every single day. Things I'd never really noticed or given thanks for. I could hardly wait to write down each evening what I'd seen, heard, and enjoyed. I still have that tiny notebook and browse through it once in a while. And it still holds the joy of those moments I wrote about so long ago.

Perhaps it's time to take up a new challenge for this new year. Perhaps it's a time to record some of those luminous joy moments that show up in my life as good gifts from the God above. Not so much to remind myself to be grateful—I learned that years ago—but to gather those beautiful moments that "have given pleasure before they disappear", as Nigel says. These "brief celebrations, each one a tiny feast" that feed my soul in an "increasingly darkening world"—also Nigel. Letting the joy of them push back the darkness, letting the joy of them strengthen me so I may keep calm and carry on.

My Thousand Moments. It may be only a few dozen small things that fit in this small but gorgeous notebook. Nowhere near a thousand, but it's a place to start. 

❦

Wishing you a beautiful day,

Brenda

Photo credit:

Brenda Leyland @ It's A Beautiful Life

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