Dear Avery,
I’m a firm believer that things like quotes, people, works of art, sunsets, a super moon, or a song will find me at the right time when I need a moment of reflection. A simple Instagram photo and caption found its way to me when I needed it to.
A woman who’s company is an inspiration to me, The Shine Project, who’s tagline is: “Wear Change. Ignite Hope.” (is enough to warrant admiration). But more than that, she usually eludes a genuine joy in her social posts that is infectious. Until she started doing something I noticed over time…sharing small truths that life hasn’t been easy for her. And then she posted this:
Most people would scroll and see… a cozy setting for Christmas. And scroll on. But I noticed the sign that reads, “Ain’t Life Grand.” And then I read her very real post about that saying:
3 Things came to mind in this post:
- She hadn’t noticed the sign in her home for 2 years — and it’s huge! But I believe this happens to everyone. You only notice the things you are looking for, and in that moment, she needed a reality check so she noticed the sign.
- This cozy photo is a quintessential image of contentment, yet clearly, this life is not perfect when you read the words that come along with it.
- These words found me and others when we needed to see that sign for ourselves. <This is my favorite part of the internet — easily.>
And so began the thoughts in my own life.
Life is grand. But grand can be heavy. The pains of your life can be pretty overwhelming. They can feel suffocating because of the largeness of your situation.
Grand can be exquisite and lavish too. It can also be small in nature, but large in impact. Ain’t that grand?
Funny to harp on that word, but I just love that life is as such.
One day I’m watching the embodiment of grand: World of Color ( a water/light/music/fire show at Disneyland). I was in complete awe of the beauty, creativity, and work that went into that show (hat tip to my friend Michael Duncan for producing that show)… leaving with a childlike wonder and amazement.
The next day, I face the realization that parts of my life have not gone as I intended. I’m missing some essential things, that when I take a step back, are quite grand in scale.
Love and loss. Hope and despair. Joy and sadness. Fulfillment and discontent. Unexpected blessings and unanswered prayers.
Life is messy. Life is beautiful. Life is complicated. Life is magical.
In spite of the extremes, we tend to live a majority of our lives in the repetition of the every day shuffle. Missing the signs that say … Ain’t Life Grand?
In all its glory and its pain, it sure is grand.
With love,
Aunt Megs
ps. how many times did I use the word “grand”. Jeez — I need a thesaurus.
With Love, Aunt Megs 