Making the ordinary come alive.
I saw a beautiful poem: Do not ask your children to strive — by William Martin.
He writes how to teach children to take immense joy in simple pleasures. Invite them into wonder and let them marvel in supremely simple things.
Three decades on this beautiful marble (and even more apparent from the virus), this has been a soothing reminder that ordinary is really lovely.
A belly of laughter from a good chat, the salty finish of a good cookie, and the warmth from a sunny balcony.
Anything beyond? Lovely cream on a satisfying cake of life. The ‘extraordinary’.
Full text of the poem below:
“Do not ask your children
to strive for extraordinary lives.
Such striving may seem admirable,
but it is the way of foolishness.
Help them instead to find the wonder
and the marvel of an ordinary life.
Show them the joy of tasting
tomatoes, apples and pears.
Show them how to cry
when pets and people die.
Show them the infinite pleasure
in the touch of a hand.
And make the ordinary come alive for them.
The extraordinary will take care of itself.”