It’s a common understanding in my family that I dislike shopping. I try really hard to have a positive attitude—truly, I do—but there’s something about a crowded mall that draws out my inner grump. Me and God are working on this.
So, you can imagine my surprise when a recent trip for basketball runners found me delightfully in conversation with Frank—an elderly man who often goes to the mall for … wait for it … FUN! Catch God’s sense of humor? 🤦🏼♀️
As I sat next to Frank, talking about basketball shoes (which I know nothing about), Frank asked if I ever visit the mall to people-watch? I laughed and admitted I would rather scrub toilets, and Frank said, with a cheeky smirk on his face, “I understand. Toilets have a lot less crap.” 😂 I knew right then and there Frank and I could easily be new best friends.
For 45 minutes, I listened to Frank talk about life, his story, how hard and lonely aging is, and how being at a busy mall reminds him he is alive, he is still here, and that his life matters.
I asked how people-watching helps him do that, and he said:
“When I wonder about other people’s lives—what they do for work, what their story is, if they’re married, if they have kids, what their heritage is, and if they cheer for the right baseball team (the Red Sox)—it connects me to them. They may not notice me, but noticing them reminds my heart we’re all in this together.” 😭
We’ve been exploring the soul work of wonder this month, and we’ve certainly considered a few rich and nuanced ways wonder might unfold:
But for this final week, and with today’s prompts, may I “be frank” (😉)?
Whatever “the mall” is for you, and whatever “shopping” looks like, could I invite you, instead, to consider seeing your grumpy and unlikeable places as opportunity to perhaps explore the wonder of:
- Conversation
- People watching
- Bench sitting
- Question asking
- Surprise inviting
- Story listening
- Joke sharing
- (And in honor of Frank) – Elderly noticing
You just never know what unexpected delights, wise insights, and “crappy” puns might be awaiting you this week on the other side of surprise.
“If I appreciate what is around me, I will also wonder at it, be amazed and astonished by it, feel a kind of reverence for it, especially reverence for the mystery of every human being. Out of appreciation comes praise, and true praise includes reverence and wonder, and the desire to be somehow absorbed and at one with the object of my wonder.” —Gerard Hughes [1]
—With Joy
Spiritual Director
Co-Founder & Content Director
cindy@joyover.com
Pause for Thought
“Here we find ourselves: dancers in this beautiful, mysterious choreography that expands and evolves and includes us all. We’re farmers and engineers, parents and students, theologians and scientists, teachers and shopkeepers, builders and fixers, drivers and doctors, dads and moms, wise grandparents and wide-eyed infants.
Don’t we all feel like poets when we try to speak of the beauty and wonder of this creation? Don’t we share a common amazement about our cosmic neighborhood when we wake up to the fact that we’re actually here, actually alive, right now?” [2]
Pause for Practice
Put yourself in a new situation this week: try a new coffee shop, drive a new route, stroll through a different neighborhood, and simply notice the people around you. As Frank does, spend time wondering what these people do for work, what their story is, if they’re married, if they have kids, what their heritage is, and perhaps what sports team they cheer for. Invite God to remind your heart that we’re all in this thing called life together.
“Wonder is most accessible in new situations, because we don’t have a narrative about what’s happening.” —Scott Erickson [3]
Now, with your responses filled in, add “is holy” after every answer. Linger over the reality of each statement and allow the richness of each truth to sink in. When ready, talk to God about anything and everything that surfaces.
Pause for Prayer
Use the following passage of scripture to form a conversation of prayer with God as you exercise the above spiritual practice this week: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” [4]
- [1] God of Surprises by Gerard W. Hughes, p.57.
- [2] Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditation, From the Center for Action and Contemplation, The Privilege of Life Itself, December 8, 2023.
- [3] Honest Advent by Scott Erickson, Introduction, pp.7-8.
- [4] Galatians 3:28, WEB.
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P.S. The struggle is real but remember, we’re all in this together
