For the past couple of months I have had the good fortune of staying with some friends while I’ve been looking for a place to live in my newly adopted city. It has been a huge gift and I am incredibly grateful. They are good people, kind and generous. Their kindness has taken a huge a huge pressure off this house hunting business. And, one of the fringe benefits of this gift has been the availability of their hot tub right outside my door. As a result, most morning right after I wake up, and most evening, just before heading to bed, you will find me spending a few minutes soaking and staring up into the star filled (and sometimes cloud filled) sky. Many of my recent haikus have emerged from this wonderful aquatic practice. So it was that this evening a fun realization emerged. I was having a difficult time finding a new haiku. What else could I say that would be fresh and new? Was I in danger of falling into a rut? There had been this one…

and this one…

and this one…

and several others besides. Then it occurred to me that there was no rut to fall into, except possibly the rut of my own inattention. Because no matter how many nights and mornings I sit here soaking and staring up into the sky, it is never, ever going to be the same. I am not the same from moment to moment. The sky is never the same. The Earth is rotating on its axis at some ridiculous rate of speed, and circling the Sun at an even more mind bending speed, all while our whole Solar System is spinning through our Galaxy, as the Galaxy is traveling through the Universe. As the saying goes, you can never step into the same river twice! If I fall into a rut there is absolutely no one to blame but myself, because there is ALWAYS something new to notice. And all that is required is for me to pay attention. I might not always manage to come up with a fresh new haiku. But I can always find something that will fill me with awe. Tonight I noticed Mars shining high in the eastern sky. And I remember 50 or 60 years ago when I first learned that you could actually see another planet just by knowing where to look. It was an absolutely awe-inspiring new awareness. Today, even though I’ve known that for all these years, I am still filled with awe at the sight of that twinkling bit of reddish-hued light up there among the stars. 

And then, just like that, tonight’s haiku showed up. I love it when that happens.

never stop looking
because there is always more
to fill you with awe

Always choose to pay attention. Always choose to notice. Always choose awe. Always!