Enlightened and a Little Lost
Today I am grateful for the muscles in my legs and torso that are responding to physical therapy exercises. There is such resilience in our physical bodies, and also our mental, emotional, and spiritual beings.
Yesterday I headed to our local Walmart to get a few things. It's not my favorite place to shop, but with our Target closing two years ago, it's convenient. I appreciate the steps I get in, and that I can get grocery and stock-up items under one roof.
What I couldn't get though was a needed bulb for a bathroom light fixture. Reaching the light bulb aisle, I saw three other shoppers combing over the wide selection of bulbs. My search was proving fruitless. One shopper was double-checking a note. Two others were confirming the wattage needed. Another was a bit overwhelmed by so many choices.
We, as random shoppers and complete strangers, were sharing a moment in this aisle full of light, but feeling a little lost. I made some comment about "it didn't used to be this difficult." There were smiles and nods and a couple comments of agreement. One woman helped the rest of us out by directing us to the next aisle, where there were still more bulbs to peruse.
This brief connection with others was heartening, even though my search failed. There are more energy efficient bulbs and more environmentally friendly bulbs. They just didn't happen to be the ones a couple of us needed. So there is good in this number of selections, but I was still struck by the vast choices we have in our modern world.
It's the same over in the grocery aisles. It's so unnecessary in many ways. I believe energy could go to better pursuits than giving us more options and in some cases more anxiety. Our capitalist economy is the driver of some of this, and there's also good in such an economy. The best I can do on most days is decide where to give my energy; at the store, at home, at work.
A moment in a store aisle failed in one way and succeeded in another.
The local hardware store didn't have the bulb we needed either. A third store probably will. Our bathroom will go with a little less light for a few more days. No big deal. Our home is full of convenient light sources when we need them.
And today, I am full of light too. The kind that comes from within. The kind that comes in moments of mindful presence.
Yesterday I headed to our local Walmart to get a few things. It's not my favorite place to shop, but with our Target closing two years ago, it's convenient. I appreciate the steps I get in, and that I can get grocery and stock-up items under one roof.
What I couldn't get though was a needed bulb for a bathroom light fixture. Reaching the light bulb aisle, I saw three other shoppers combing over the wide selection of bulbs. My search was proving fruitless. One shopper was double-checking a note. Two others were confirming the wattage needed. Another was a bit overwhelmed by so many choices.
We, as random shoppers and complete strangers, were sharing a moment in this aisle full of light, but feeling a little lost. I made some comment about "it didn't used to be this difficult." There were smiles and nods and a couple comments of agreement. One woman helped the rest of us out by directing us to the next aisle, where there were still more bulbs to peruse.
This brief connection with others was heartening, even though my search failed. There are more energy efficient bulbs and more environmentally friendly bulbs. They just didn't happen to be the ones a couple of us needed. So there is good in this number of selections, but I was still struck by the vast choices we have in our modern world.
It's the same over in the grocery aisles. It's so unnecessary in many ways. I believe energy could go to better pursuits than giving us more options and in some cases more anxiety. Our capitalist economy is the driver of some of this, and there's also good in such an economy. The best I can do on most days is decide where to give my energy; at the store, at home, at work.
A moment in a store aisle failed in one way and succeeded in another.
The local hardware store didn't have the bulb we needed either. A third store probably will. Our bathroom will go with a little less light for a few more days. No big deal. Our home is full of convenient light sources when we need them.
And today, I am full of light too. The kind that comes from within. The kind that comes in moments of mindful presence.
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