Choose to notice!

Arden and I were traveling for 19 hours from the time we left our home in Carnation to when we finally were able to rest at our hotel in Florence Italy.  We were exhausted and excited to finally be at our destination.

The journey can be daunting.  Some people recently confided to me that they wished they could go to Italy as well, but they don’t see how they could tolerate the trip.  I don’t know how to respond.  I am sad for them that they won’t have these same amazing opportunities and I commiserate with them that the journey is difficult.

While sitting in two different airports during that period, I observed that most people seemed to be mechanically waiting for the next thing to happen on their trip.  Mindlessly tolerating their journey, I believe they missed witnessing some glorious moments, such as seeing a toddler pushing her grandmother’s wheelchair toward the gate.  Her mom and dad were close at hand, ready to jump in, if assistance was needed, but that little girl experienced the joy of serving someone she loved at a very young age.  The look on her tiny face was inspiring.

Arden and I saw a woman running to get on the tram heading to our gate.  Once the doors closed, we overheard a white-haired older flight attendant commit to helping the traveler get to her gate.  As soon as the doors opened they both sprinted up the stairs and around the corner.  A couple of hours later we met that same flight attendant greeting us at the door of our plane.  Sadly she reported that the woman had missed her flight after all, but she got her to the help desk so she could rebook a flight.  To me the important thing was that someone else noticed the travelers plight and attempted to help.  Even though the flight missed, we witnessed one person unselfishly caring for another person.

On the small jet from Amsterdam to Florence there was an extended family group seated around us.  Out of 100 passengers there were 30 individuals, little children, teenagers, grandparents, aunts and uncles; all joyfully talking to one another, moving seats after takeoff, sitting together, standing around blocking the center aisle, passing babies back and forth.  Obviously they were all traveling together.  I didn’t understand the language they were speaking but the excitement was tangible.  I don’t know the purpose of their trip and the source of their joy, it could have been leaving the rain of Amsterdam for the sun in Florence.  They could be traveling to a family wedding or a funeral, but whatever the occasion, their joy was palpable and it lifted my spirits too.

Too often when faced with experiences that we just want to get through, so we can move on, we can miss witnessing amazing moments. Learn to become aware.  Look up from your phone, tablet or other device.  Notice the miracles happening around you.  I did today and it made my own long journey more joyful.

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2 Comments

  1. Thanks for the reminder. I too believe there are miracles every day that we miss by not taking the time to notice.

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Announcing that I have finished a book with the working title of “The Fairy Fort.” I am currently pitching it to publishers. Keep checking back to watch the progress of my newest novel.

Here is a quick glimpse of the story.

Sarah Doherty is an 18-year-old living in rural Ireland at the tail end of the Great War. Plagued by severe epilepsy, she is protected by her parents and lives a sheltered, secluded, lonely life. The Fae, local Irish fairies, interfere with her life. She falls forward a century in time through the local fairy fort of standing stones. She had a seizure in 1918 and woke up in 2020. The 21st century world includes life-saving prescriptions, physical comforts and the independence and freedom she seeks. The locals are welcoming and Andy Mclaughlin, a handsome young historian, is intriguing. She doesn’t want to return home.

Then a letter arrives from Boston divulging the story of Sarah and Andy’s lives that are deeply entwined in the previous century. They are not yet in love but as they seek to verify the letter through online resources, they feel a growing obligation to their unborn family and to each other. What would happen to their posterity living in Boston if they don’t return to 1918? Even if they do make it back, her parents can never know what happened to her or that would change everything.

This Young Adult time-travel romance explores the question: Do we have the freedom to make choices or is free will an elaborate illusion?

This is my third book. I love reading time travel romances. I am an advocate for epilepsy awareness because my 43-year-old son has intractable epilepsy. As a genealogist specializing in Irish research, I live part of the year in the village where the story is based. I wrote the book to help young adults understand that difficult situations can change your life. Sometimes miraculously.