Find Something Beautiful

--by keepsmiling, posted Oct 25, 2009

FIND SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL

I had a very special teacher in high school many years ago whose husband died suddenly of a heart attack. About a week after his death, she shared some of her insights with a classroom of students. The class was nearly over, and as the late afternoon sunlight came streaming in through the classroom windows, she moved a few things aside on the edge of her desk and sat down there. With a gentle look of reflection on her face, she paused and said, "Before class is over, I would like to share with all of you a thought that is unrelated to class, but which I feel is very
important."

"Each of us is put here on earth to learn, share, love, appreciate and give of ourselves. None of us knows when this fantastic experience will end. It can be taken away at any moment. Perhaps this is the universe's way of telling us that we must make the most out of every single day." Her eyes beginning to water, she went on, "So I would like you all to make me a promise. From now on, on your way to school, or on your way home, find something beautiful to notice. It doesn't have to be something you see; it could be a scent, perhaps of freshly baked bread wafting out of someone's house, or it could be the sound of the breeze slightly rustling the leaves in the trees, or the way the morning light catches one autumn leaf as it falls gently to the ground." "Please look for these things, and cherish them. For, although it may sound trite to some, those moments are the true riches of life. They occur for us to enjoy them. We must awaken ourselves to these moments, for at any time, it can all be taken away." The class was completely quiet. We all picked up our books and filed out of the room silently.

That afternoon, I noticed more things on my way home from school than I had that whole semester. Every once in a while, I think of that teacher and remember what an impression she made on all of us, and I try to appreciate all of those things that sometimes we all overlook.

Take notice of something special you see on your lunch hour today. Go barefoot. Or walk on the beach at sunset. Walk in the rain. Stop off on the way home tonight to get a double-dip ice cream cone. For as we get older, it is not the things we did that we often regret, but the things we did not do.

2012 Reads

Posted by keepsmiling
Oct 25, 2009
Comments (10)

Readers Comments

jsmc10 wrote: Thank you for sharing this. It is beautiful and inspirational

cz wrote: Thanks for sharing. For me, this is the best one.

Syl wrote: Simply beautiful. Just the smell of flowers, reading a book while laying on a paceful beach listenign to the breeze whistling. Wow, that's fantastic. Simple things are the ones which make us a day!

vickey wrote: That's just beautiful

Harshad Parekh wrote: Good teachers teach how to live life healthily, happily, creatively every day.

I like this story very much.

FairyBubbles wrote: What a lovely teacher - willing to share even in her deepest pain. God bless her.

HiddenGems wrote: Thank you for paying this forward. I always try to make my children aware of these things too and when you ask them what they liked most about the day it will usually be something like " seeing the cloud shaped like an elephant" or " feeling how cool the rain was after we left the library".

makesomeonesmile wrote: Very wise words to live by, thanks!

helpinghand wrote: Very nice .

AnjuDV wrote: My eyes are getting wet....such a lovely thought. Love - Anju

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