When one careens through life, bouncing off the walls of the journey, pretty much the whole ride is unexpected. Surprise after surprise and you rarely have time to enjoy any of it. If you have followed my writings at all, you know I preach the PAUSE. You miss so much if your pause button is stuck on GO GO GO.
On this morning’s walk with my four-legged companions, I spent time sniffing the morning as they do. Ahhh, fall is in the air. I am sure they were reading full novels while my sniff was a mere muddled sentence. But as I was pausing to pay attention to my surroundings, I noticed something my wife had mentioned: a new scent in the air.
As there was only one plant in full bloom nearby, that was my first quest. My mind was saying, “that is just Broom Snakeweed or Gutierrezia sarothrae.” It is a native plant and one that the bovines ignore and so when you see large expanses of it, you know you are staring at an overgrazed piece of land. One needs to pay attention though as we have two other small, yellow blooming shrubs which look very similar: Turpentine Bush or Ericameria laricifolia and Damianita, Chrysactinia mexicana.
But this morning my nose was telling me to look a bit closer, look with my nose. In all the years that I have strolled by Broom Snakeweed, I had never noticed that it has an amazing fragrance, a scent that brings your stroll to an abrupt halt. The old phrase, “Stop to smell the roses”, is sage advice. Not only does one benefit from the fragrance, but you also get to enjoy the beautiful yellow flowers and the myriad of little pollinators flitting and crawling and going about their workday. There is a lot of story right there before your eyes.
So, on your journey today, intentionally pause, put your nose up and test the breeze, cast your eyes in a slow searching gaze and revel in whatever you find. You will find something, just look deeply, and pay close attention to the minute, the small as well as the large. There are many joys hidden from the casual view if one will but peer closer to life.
Enjoy