Category: Wonder

What Do You Find Awe-Inducing?

Louis Armstrong’s gravelly yet beautiful voice blessed a tune that recounts the beauty of earth-bound nature and the sacredness of the nighttime sky. The song is filled with awe, and includes some lines about babies who will grow and learn more than he’d ever know. And so, Louis “thought to [himself], what a wonderful world.”
Sometimes, we find it difficult to escape our rushed and patterned lives to witness the awe that surrounds us. But once in a while–heck, as often as you can–you would be wise to look around you and find reason to see that we live in a wonderful world.
As for me, one of the most magical things I see comes after a dandelion seed finds a crack in the cement and grows impressive roots and an above-ground stem and flower that some hate but others love. If you dislike dandelions, did you know that all parts of a dandelion are edible? The plant is a good source of vitamins A, C, K, and D, along with calcium, iron, magnesium, and potassium. How awesome is that! I am similarly amazed that a tiny cottonwood seed created the mammoth tree in my neighbor’s backyard.
Music also fascinates me. When experiencing the Sunday Scaries, I often don my headphones, open my music app, and randomize play from my 1,171 top-rated songs. While it’s cliché, music transports me to another place. It doesn’t matter the mood or subject of the tunes my app picks; I end the night in a better place than before notes hit my eardrums. There’s a scientific answer to this transportation: our brains release dopamine, a happiness-inducing chemical, when we listen to tunes. How lucky are we to have music in this world of ours!
I could go on with the things in the universe that captivate me. But I’d prefer to read your answers.
What do you find awe-inducing?

What’s The Most Amazing Natural Wonder You’ve Experienced?

There is a large variety of natural (i.e not man-made) beauty in the world. This includes mountains, waterfalls, canyons, coral reefs, sand dunes, and more. What do you consider the most remarkable natural wonder you’ve seen in person?

Share why if you wish.

What Does Spirituality Mean To You?

The word “spirituality” means different things to different people.

For some, the word may conjure up visions of a religious ceremony, attended by a cleric, with or without a choir and a sacred text.

Others might think of healing crystals and psychic readings.

Some people think spirituality simply means a walk in the woods, listening to the gentle sounds of nature.

Each person must decide the right way for him or her to commune with something greater than themselves.

Do you have a preferred way? Perhaps meditation? Praying? Ouija board? Tarot deck? Magic eight ball?

What does spirituality mean to you? Are there certain rituals you follow? And how did you come to your views on this very personal belief?

Related questions: Do you believe in the supernatural? Are science and religion compatible? What gives you purpose?

What Amazes You?

I’m amazed by things big (like the universe) and small (like an heirloom seed). One is 13.8 billion years old and dying very slowly. The other is sitting in dormancy until the right conditions allow it to give birth to another version of itself.

What amazes you? All answers — grandiose and / or commonplace — are welcomed.

Related questions: How can we maintain wonder?  What is important? Why do we like what we like? Why are things amazing?