The Doorway Into Thanks

Roger Housden shared this beautiful poem in his weekly newsletter this week.  Paying attention and deep gratitude for the small wonders around us can transport us to another world.  

Praying
by Mary Oliver
 

It doesn't have to be
the blue iris, it could be
weeds in a vacant lot, or a few
small stones; just
pay attention, then patch

a few words together and don't try
to make them elaborate, this isn't
a contest but the doorway

into thanks, and a silence in which
another voice may speak.

On our recent trip to Namibia, on the banks of the Kunene river, my husband, a true explorer by nature, started observing the stones and pebbles in the river bed during his walk, and this is what he discovered and shared with us  .... 

All the stones and pebbles are covered in a thin layer of grey dust, but as soon as you wash them in the water, their magical patterns and colours emerge.  We had such fun and definitely slipped into a world of magic and gratitude.