Average Jane’s Sense of Wonder

My Reverb 10 prompt of the day: Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year?

For me, maintaining a sense of wonder only requires me to really look at everything I see. When I walk around outside, watch my cats play or gaze out the window, I'm constantly seeing beautiful, inspiring, wonderful things. Some of those things are natural and others are impressive man-made expressions of art or engineering.

One of my favorite things about going walking outdoors is that I get to experience new things every time. For instance, I'm rather excited that with each passing week, we get to see more and more holiday lights and decorations on people's homes as we walk by.

Another thing that keeps my sense of wonder exercised is reading about both the past and the future. I love Archaeology magazine because of the amazing things it reveals about our ancestors and how they lived. I also read science blogs to learn about the wonders the future may hold.

Finally, there are books. Nothing keeps my mind attuned to wonder like immersing myself in a good novel (or in some cases, a really well-written non-fiction book). It pulls me away from the real world for a few hours at a time, but when I come back, it's as though I've been on a vacation to another life.

I think the key to wonder is to always be observing what happens around you. It can be easy to put your head down and walk through life with blinders on, but when you really see the things that surround you, every day becomes full of fascinating moments.