Author Silas House issued a challenge to writers: live James Still's advice to discover something new every day and write about it. So here I am.
My 16 month-old son is teaching me how to discover the newness of little things. He has the perfect vantage point, no further than a few feet from the ground where so much is taken for granted by those of us who have long forgotten that place except when we drop our keys or are told to watch our step. Our walk from the car to the library's door was especially slow today because he discovered so much along the way: the perfection of a poplar leaf dressed in autumn red, the glint of a silver cap bottle, a tiny green spider rappelling from the safety bar beside the steps. Every few feet he stopped, twisted his tiny hand from my grip, and squatted to inspect his treasure. "Ahh," he gasps, pointing, and I give him the word as I settled down alongside him because he's truly onto something here.
He notices what he can't reach and demands to be lifted so he can inspect it. The glittering crystals on a chandelier that dissect sunshine into a kaleidoscope of patterns on distant walls. The pull chain that magically puts a ceiling fan into motion. The smooth, cool sensation of a door knob. And a light switch, the most amazing discovery of all. He puts his thumb on the switch and turns expectantly toward the light before he pushes, waits with bated breath, then gasps in delight when light blooms. His smile outshines those lights because he's discovered how to make magic in one small move. Every time he flips the switch, it's as if a chorus of angels erupt in praise.
He notices what he can't reach and demands to be lifted so he can inspect it. The glittering crystals on a chandelier that dissect sunshine into a kaleidoscope of patterns on distant walls. The pull chain that magically puts a ceiling fan into motion. The smooth, cool sensation of a door knob. And a light switch, the most amazing discovery of all. He puts his thumb on the switch and turns expectantly toward the light before he pushes, waits with bated breath, then gasps in delight when light blooms. His smile outshines those lights because he's discovered how to make magic in one small move. Every time he flips the switch, it's as if a chorus of angels erupt in praise.
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