Every morning I step outside, there is an invitation waiting. It is quiet and often softly hidden. It seems as if it lies just beyond this thin veil of noticing. Amusingly I often find simple offerings from creation that tease my spirit and deepen my awareness.
Today was a little different, being filled with these intimate moments of connection that continue to invite me to lean in further to the whispers of our Creator.
His red breast reflected the sun that was just appearing. My eye caught the glimmering moment as I passed by him. Instead of flying away from my nearness, he came toward me as if he had invited himself to join me on my morning walk. I paused and greeted him, “Good morning and how are you, my little friend?” The question didn’t deter him as he continued to follow me. After several steps, I turned again and asked, “Is there something I can do for you?” He never answered, but I felt he was a messenger.
Within a few minutes, I noticed another robin, this time in a neighbor’s front yard. He too watched me intently and then began coming towards me.
“Okay, you too?” My heart was smiling and expanding with these side by side encounters. “I see you. What are you trying to tell me?”
I watched him as he stepped closer and closer. He had my full attention but in such a gentle way. I noticed how peaceful and loved I felt. Within a few minutes, a cottontail joined this chorus, raising his head from his morning grass feast to look at me as I walked by. I wondered what his part was in this heavenly exchange of “being seen and loved.”
This power of being seen in love causes these moments within one’s heart to bring forth comfort and peace, knowing you deeply matter. I remember those moments when health care professionals would “see” Jessie, even though she was unrecognizable and unresponsive, and how comforted my heart was, knowing “she mattered”. I also remember those moments when they didn’t and how my grief and pain were magnified, wanting to scream and lash out, “This is my beloved daughter who is hurt. She matters to me more than anything! Why doesn’t she matter to you!?”
We have a God who sees us. (Genesis 16:13) Today as we step out into the invitations of the day, I wonder who God wants us to see? Who is walking by in need of some comfort and peace, and assurance they deeply matter? May we have the grace to be awakened to those special connections today that are quietly waiting for us to notice.