We live in an age marked by uncertainty, anxiety, violence, political divisiveness, loneliness, and fears of all kinds. We are not the first age to experience such things. During such times it is easy for us to slip into numbness or even despair. That’s why it is more important than ever to cultivate experiences of awe in our lives.
What is awe? Awe is the feeling we get in the presence of something vast that is beyond our understanding: a night sky filled with stars, towering trees in a forest, mighty waves crashing along a rocky ocean shore. We can have an experience of awe with small things too: gazing at the tiny fingernails of a newborn, pondering a line from a poem that moves our heart, catching the scent of Christmas cookies baking, or spotting a lone hawk soaring high above us. Recent research has demonstrated the powerful positive effects awe can have on us.
1. Awe can soothe our central nervous system. It can actually lower blood pressure, ease anxiety, and bestow calm upon us.
2. Awe can expand our sense of connection with others. It gives us the sense that we are part of something much bigger than ourselves. It underscores our bond with other human beings and, indeed, with the rest of existence. Surely the experience of the total eclipse on April 8, 2024 did this for millions of people–including myself! One study even showed that people who experienced awe were more likely to be generous and to volunteer their time for others (Zhang, 2014).
3. Awe promotes openness, creativity, understanding. It reconnects us with the mystery, power, and richness of life.
4. Awe makes us feel small in a good way. It humbles us while simultaneously widening our perspective.
It seems to me that cultivating experiences of awe in our everyday life would be a very good Advent practice. But how can we do this? The Spiritual Naturalist Society website lists several ways. Here are three.
1. By the mindful observation of nature. Leigh Anderson writes, “One of the most reliable doorways into awe is simply stepping outside with the intent to notice.” This might be challenging if we live in a place of cold, ice, and snow during Advent. But we can still cultivate awe by taking a walk, standing in our backyard or on our porch, or gazing out a window at the gently falling snow or a howling blizzard. Or we can watch a PBS documentary on redwood trees, lions and tigers, our national parks, stars, and even pigeons! (Yes, pigeons! I recently watched such a program and came away in awe over these birds we sometimes see only as “dirty pests.”) Choose an experience that invtes you into a rhythm that’s “slower, older, and more generous” than the one you are usually inhabit.
2. By slowing down and making space for stillness. On my list of books to read is John Mark Comer’s book with the fascinating title: The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, a New York Times bestseller. I know I am guilty of getting caught up with the hurry and rush of contemporary life. Did you know that in 1974 cardiologists coined the phrase “hurry sickness”? They defined this sickness as the chronic state of stress caused by feeling rushed and overwhelmed even without a clear reason. Common “symptoms” of this “illness” include impatience, irritability, emotional numbness, and addiction to work. One antedote to hurry sickness is deliberately slowing down on a regular basis.
3. By seeing the ordinary as extraordinary. We experience the ordinary so often, we can take it for granted, or, worse yet, we can fail to really see and experience it. Zen teachers encourage their students to approach their surroundings with a “beginner’s mind,” that is, to experience their surroundings as if for the first time. Another way we can experience the ordinary as extraordinary is to see the ordinary through the eyes of a small child. Little kids can get excited over catching snowflakes on their tongue, seeing a Nativity set beneath a Christmas tree, spotting a red cardinal at a bird feeder, and, in summer, beholding their first dragonfly. They remind us of the extraordinary in the ordinary, the miraculous in the everyday.
Jesus made time for awe. Jesus valued awe experiences in his life. He regularly went up into the mountains to pray. Perhaps he felt closer to God up there, or he simply enjoyed getting a wider perspective on the valley below–much as we do when we pull off the parkway every time we see a “scenic overlook” sign. Jesus noticed the everyday miracles of bread rising, wine fermenting, weather patterns forming, and mother hens sheltering their young beneath their wings.
He was amazed when he witnessed moral goodness in people: that Roman centurian with his extraordinary tenderness toward his servant, and the destitute widow generously depositing two small coins into the temple treasury. He gave us examples of moral goodness in his stories–especially the Good Samaritan and the forgiving father in the Prodigal Son. And he counseled us to do likewise. Jesus called his followers’ attention to the birds of the air and lilies of the field. He even made time to play with children, to watch shepherds caring for their sheep on the hillside, to notice camels squeezing through narrow gates, and to engage in conversation with a wide variety of individuals–including women.
Awe experiences aren’t just “nice” experiences to have because they can make us feel good. Awe experiences can actually help to make us good, to make us better! They are, in some ways, essential for our well-being as individuals, as a human community, and as a whole earth community. And finally, it is precisely through awe that we can gain access to the Creator-and-Sustainer-of-All-That-Is, our Beloved and Awe-Inspiring God!
Reflection questions:
Did any words or ideas in this reflection stand out for you? Do you know why?
Reflect on a few key experiences of awe that you have had. What effects did they have on you? Would you like to share one of those experiences with us below?
Have you experienced the “moral goodness” in an individual or a group of individuals that made you want to be a better person?
What actions do you take to avoid catching the “hurry sickness”?
PS: below is a moment of “sunset awe” I savored from my porch/balcony the other day…
Our video today is called “Winter Wonder.” In 3 min. and 17 secs. it captures some of the awe-inspiring beauty of winter accompanied by gentle music. Videos such as these are produced by “Nature Relaxation.” I hope you enjoy it.
I welcome you to share a comment below–about the reflection, photographs, reflective questions, or video:
25 Responses
Good morning, Melannie
Good morning, all…
So true! This Monday’s blog is needed. I clung to every word. And the video — that should be mandatory viewing! But even as I watched the beautiful snow falling and the gorgeous overhead shots, I found mind mind drifting (no pun) to other things. I had to work to stay in the moment.
I sometimes experience awe when I take my morning walks. I do not live in an especially bucolic setting, but there is a pond, a town park, and a beautiful cemetery along my route. Once, while walking through the cemetery, I saw a tombstone with a single date — Jan. 22, 1996 — and underneath the date, “one sweet day.” It stopped me in my tracks! And I was deeply moved. This child lived just one day, and yet her short life still has an effect on people.
Finally, I’m reading a book by Niall Williams called This Is Happiness. It’s set in Ireland and the narrator is an old man looking back on his life, specifically the year 1958. I’m about half-way through, and I set aside time each day to slowly read Williams’s brilliant diction. A single sentence sometimes makes me scramble for a pen or pencil so as to mark yet another linguistic miracle!
One last thing I promise! Yesterday we got our first significant snowfall. Not much but enough to give us a thin carpet of white. I saw on my porch tiny footprints. A cat maybe? Not sure. But certainly a little visitor. I stared in awe!
Williams’ book Time of the Child is a treasure too.
I just let my dog out into our yard and was in awe of the moon behind the trees. It reminded me of my friend Mira who loved the moon. Thanks for the reflection. Happy Advent!
Thanks for this reflection and the video. I often say I enjoy watching the snow – but I don’t enjoy driving in it! Lol
My awe experiences this year had me at the beach with family, and also in the mountains with my husband. I do love nature. One other experience was participating in an annual quilt retreat. I am in awe of the creative talent of other women. Finally, I have a new (one month old) grandson, and that for me is the most awe-inspiring of all.
I recently experienced a performer (fiddler) at an assisted living facility. I was brought to tears by her talent but more so by her energy, enthusiasm and genuine connection with her audience. My daughter is a music therapist and I was awed by the power of music, how it touches something deep inside us and brings people together.
Wonderful posting today, Sister Melanie. Christmas blessings to you.
My winter wonder came on Saturday while painting the siding and fascia on our home. This mid-December task is so contrary to South Dakota and Wyoming where all my younger years were lived. The leaves falling from the Chinquapin Oak never made it into my paint can, and the tiniest of geckos showed up after wiping off all their deposits from the past several seasons. Giddy up and God Bless from deep in the heart of Texas.
Best moment of awe in my 87 years, our lst. night in Yosemite National park.
I stepped out of our bedroom onto a balcony and was amazed at the sound of voices coming from afar I direction of the valley. The hundreds of colorful tents we saw there when purchasing supplies that day, had come alive that moonless night.
Then, looking up, the AWE!! The sky so full of stars that I gasped!
Unable to sleep, I found the guest book and began reading entries.
One signer said he slept his lst. Night next to the garbage cans by the kitchen exit.
He stayed there as often as he could because it was so amazing seeing so many stars.
That was in 2007 but I still visualize and feel that awe today.
T
Saint Francis was always in Awe of God’s Creation. I , too see God in every thing God created. I see God. in friendly clerks, neighbors, fellow parishioners, doctors .
Mostly, I see the wonder and awe of God in His animals and birds.
Praise God for his Creation
( not omitting Jesus, Mary, Joseph and all the Saints and Angels who guide us every day😇🕊️🙏).
The English Romantic poets of the 19th century saw or tried to see the awesome in the tiny, the amazing in the ordinary. They evidenced awe in nature. So can we, wherever we live. Why squash a bug in your house when you can admire it as one of creation’s marvels, then pick it up and free it outside? Are you in a crowd? The people around you are as wonderful as you, as Thomas Merton intuited once on a street corner in Louisville, Kentucky. As Abraham Heschel wrote, “Just to be is a blessing, just to live is holy.”
That’s beautiful, George!
This past year I experienced the Grand Canyon, the Northern lights (in Wi.) and the Everglades. All were first times for me in my 77 years of life. They were all breath taking and I was awed!
when I saw the squirel on the tree I immediately went back to my Friend who recently died. When we were kids she adopted a squirel who had torn open a loaf of bread that had been delivered to her house. She had him for years.
She named him Squirely and he sat on her shoulder. We were all awed as kids.
This made me recall her. And her love of animals.
We grew up in row homes and this was so amazing to us.
Thanks Sister for the memories.
Last night we were treated to samples of the changed lights in our bell tower here at the Heights. These lights can be seen from four sides — by drivers passing by on the bigger highways or right here from our bedrooms. A few of us watching the demonstration voted on options we were given for some of the choices: white or violet? dark green or light green? With modern technology and what we share of the lighted towers at the Mayo Clinic down town, we share in another way we have to influence the people of Rochester by day or by night–at least to entertain them in a very unobtrusive way. Another way to delight the Lord whose HOUSE these lights call attention to –for PEACE and ALL GOOD!
I love the snow on the green trees. We just had this in New Jersey and the waterfall gorgeous.
Thank you for this post. I’ll use it at prayer today. The video reminded me of my trip home yesterday after our first snowfall this year. The trees were like a fairyland. Like I said earlier, thank you for this post.
Thank you for your blog topic today, Sr. Melannie. Two places that are close to my heart because of the awe that I have felt there are The Great Smokey Mountains in Tennessee (close to my grandparents farm) and U.P. Michigan. Both spots have so much beauty that they take my breath away when I visit.
I most definitely agree with you on the U.P. of my home state Michigan. The Keweenaw Peninsula, Brockway Mountain, Gay Stamp Sands, Lake Superior all of these nature beauties had me in awe numerous times and I highly recommend y’all going to visit any of them. Peace and love to all this holiday season.
Thank you once again for a beautiful reflection. We all need to take more time, to stop and really look at the beauty in so many ordinary things that surround us. Right now, even though it’s barely 30 outside, the sun is melting the snow off of my bird feeders. I enjoy watching the different kinds of birds that come to feed. Hope everyone has a wonderful week.
I look forward to your blog reflection on The Elimination of Hurry. No doubt I’ve been through the Hurry Sickness in my life. It’s never quite cured. I think that the root cause of it is distance; we are so far from everything. Go to Latin America and the tienda is right around the corner and same with ready to order food. Peru case in point. America it all takes a vehicle, time, and planning. The hurries come from not wanting to think about it. It is our trade-off to have half acre properties in town and five acre properties in the country; we don’t want commercial property near our private lives. As a result, everybody lives too far away to walk and everything is an errand. We also think as Americans that we should go from sea to shining sea and that vast picture just overwhelms our thinking; how is it possible in one lifetime?! I must hurry! I have one life to live, I must hurry! Then we want to retire to live as we should be living already; I must hurry to make millions! We slow down by appreciating the things that really matter: family and friends. Love is the cure; emptiness is the cause of hurry sickness and all the “medications” like travel and social media are numbness to the fact. We really want our neighbors to be closer but we would never give up our 5 acre property for that. We really want mom and dad but we would never admit that. We really want to take care of grandma, the ultimate slowing down of life, but cultural norms tell us to put her in a nursing home. Cultural norms are eating us alive in the United States. This is not a country to immigrate to for a better life otherwise we are saying we prefer health to sickness, wealth to poverty, comfort to strife; and what kind of Gospel message is that exactly? Not one from Jesus Christ unless the newest translation hasn’t hit my desk yet.
Beautiful post in so many ways. Melannie, your thoughts and meditations along with the video are awe inspiring. I am so grateful to have grown up in a quiet suburb in eastern Cuyahoga county in a house my father built on almost two acres. We spent a lot of time outside in all seasons and I learned to love all the sights and sounds of nature even in the snow. I live now on the westside in a busy city where I rely on the parks around me for nature walks and always find reminders of the awe I experienced every day at my own homestead. My closest family members live in opposite directions from me requiring long, sometimes tedious drives on the highway to visit them. It’s amazing the wonders you see if your eyes are open just driving: wondrous skies with awesome cloud formations, gorgeous trees in all seasons displaying artists’ paint colors, hills and valleys of green & gold, etc. Our God is an awesome God who gives gifts every day if our eyes and hearts are open to recognize them and be grateful.
One of the most awesome things in the world to me is watching tiny leaves appearing each spring- I am absolutely in awe wondering where they come from?? I know the scientific stuff but the idea that a bare tree suddenly has these leaves-and they appear”out of nothing “ is incredible
Lots of other stuff awes me too – I just treasure my gift of sight that I can behold sunsets(like your photo) and snowflakes and lightening and the faces of my family. Thank you for the reminders!
Blessed Christmas, Sister!!
I feel blessed to live in an area of natural beauty. Some of the things that fill me with awe are the male cardinal who visits our yard, sparkles on snow, blue skies with wispy and puffy cloud formations, waterfalls and mountains. Finding awe in everyday life, brings joy and leads to gratitude for the beauty of God’s creation.
Thank you, Sr. Melannie, for this inspiring reflection.
Thanks for sharing this awe. A little bit of heaven. Blessings
Thank you for these beautiful
sights I plan to view it again
thank you, Sister it really was
an awesome moment to see
and appreciate the beauty of
Gods creations that bring us
awe & peace.
Blessings
Kathy k