Wonder

I saw a great photo set not that long ago.  On one page was a spread of stars from one of the latest Hubble Space Telescope sessions.  Tiny pinpricks of light clump together in the background as a purple nebulae, remnants of a dying star, explodes into the foreground.

On the opposite page were three people gazing upward with rapt attention – clearly mesmerized.  The brief write up described some of the exciting new developments in astronomy, physics, dark energy, and science as a whole.  The last sentence read something like, “In another type of wonder altogether, these photographs were taken of people playing video games.”

It was a perfect dichotomy.  I immediately recalled a great Chesterton quote (which, admittedly, doesn’t narrow them down.)  He said, “The world will never starve for want of wonders; but only for want of wonder.”

This wonder, I believe, is recognizing – in a simple and almost childlike way – the excellence of things.  Things are excellent because of what they are.  They are excellent for what they are not.  They are excellent for what they may be.  At the risk of simply republishing Orthodoxy in full, here is another Chesterton quote that I was reminded of:

“… when we are very young children we do not need fairy tales: we only need tales. Mere life is interesting enough. A child of seven is excited by being told that Tommy opened a door and saw a dragon. But a child of three is excited by being told that Tommy opened a door. Boys like romantic tales; but babies like realistic tales — because they find them romantic. … These tales say that apples were golden only to refresh the forgotten moment when we found that they were green. They make rivers run with wine only to make us remember, for one wild moment, that they run with water.”

There are people in my life that seem to live like this.  They call my attention up to the clouds in the sky, the lampposts that are fit to be climbed, the trees on the side of the road, or the bugs on the sidewalk.  It is inspiring and compelling.  I sometimes get so stuck in systems and tasks that I forget to breathe.  When someone or something gives me pause, it is something that I appreciate immensely.  I want to recognize the simultaneously epic and intricate thing that we call life.  Mindfulness, especially in the midst of a frenetic and frantic culture, is a welcome respite.

I guess my simple and heartfelt point is thus: we ought to pursue this world and our lives with a wide-eyed wonder at everything it has to offer.