P.G. Smith Author

Three days ago, as the sun was just beginning to rise, I gazed at the moon. I do that often. She was a wispy, delicate, crescent smile that day. I had said hello to her earlier that morning when it was inky black and I could feel connected. Today she is invisible…but still there.

I was thinking about awe this morning, or at least something that I will call awe. How people connect with the universe. Do all people do that? I know a lot who do. Some do it by walking in the woods, or even parks. Some do it by snorkeling or scuba diving. Some do it by sitting alone on a porch, gazing at a lake or river. Or maybe by watching the sun rise or set over quiet hills. Some look at stars.

I wonder if everyone needs that or has access to it. That’s the good thing about the moon. Everyone has access to the moon, even city dwellers. I love the moon. It gives me that feeling I need. But what is that feeling?

Is it peace? Peace goes with quiet. I don’t think there is any such thing as peace and noisy. Noise is what we get on the internet, or at big concerts or sporting events (except golf) or rallies or traffic: chatter, energy, maybe frustration, maybe excitement, activity, but not peace. Still, we do all need peace, I think.

It’s why Mary Oliver’s poetry is so popular and universal. She is at peace with nature. It is why Robert Frost’s poem, ‘Stopping By Woods On a Snowy Evening’ is a classic. It is about taking a moment to feel peace when the opportunity presents itself. Just a moment. He can’t stay. Most of us can’t stay. We all have ‘miles to go and promises to keep.’

But we can all take a moment to gaze at a snowy field, or a glassy river in the morning, or a crescent moon in a black sky. Let worries fade. Let anxieties drop away. Feel the vastness of the universe and know that we are all part of it. Just for a moment.

We all need that right now. In the chattering, grasping, clawing, depressing, dangerous, noisy, trafficky, 24/7 world we live in, we all need moments of peace. And they are available to all of us. We just have to remember to access them–just for a moment.