When We Aren’t Looking

Dear Inner Circle,

When you see it, it’s startling to realise that most of us, most of the time, live in a world of routine; a kind of ‘business as usual’. I guess most of us are focused on worthy goals, and everything before us either enables or blocks the focus of our efforts. This is a healthy outlook except that it also means we are blind to some of the most precious moments that life delivers. The truly ‘great’ moments tend to be also ‘trivial’ in some way. A young woman shows me the keys to her new home and I can see either a lucky day for the young woman or a new beginning. Another young woman while passing me in the street, tells me she’s getting a divorce; I can see either a path ahead with yet more suffering or I can see a young woman who has found the desire and strength to move toward life. A little later, a young man gives a positive update on his attempts to reconcile with his family. I can see a fellow trying to ease his conscience or I can see a young man who’s found the courage to name himself as the cause of serious heartache and face the people who’ve suffered his foolishness and even his willfully inflicted pain. Such a rare event and easily missed.

To love is to be involved in change. It’s impossible to love in a stationary position. As I witness people receive house keys for the first time or enter into rehabilitation, I find the belief and hope required on my part, to demand a change in me. It’s easy to continually default to my own agenda and view situations as distractions and therefore begin to see people as either enablers or blockers to my own goals. It’s amazing to open my eyes enough to admit the joy of beholding a human miracle or the beauty of courage of another. The option of being surprised and inspired by others is mostly resisted. The invitation to life is always present but often, we are not looking.

Sometimes music can call you to life. Especially music that makes your body move. On Monday we were treated with a beautiful performance from a classical music ensemble at lunch time called Phoenix Collective. All in the room were filled with positivity and gratitude. If you were here you would have seen our mission coming to life. A space where the housed and homeless sat side by side, regardless of where they began and ended the day, who all for a brief moment were united in a journey to a new place as the music lifted their hearts and minds in unison.

Have a look around and see if you are not being called to change, to love and to behold life unfolding before you. Some time if you’re feeling weary, why not pay us a visit at Wayside?

Thanks for being part of our Inner Circle,

Jon