Spirit of the Season
I have spent a lot of time thinking about the Holidays this year. This has been an incredible year for my family as we’ve gone through some tremendous life altering changes. I’ve gone back to school instead of being a full time worker. Both Mark and Spence and grown tons, and have stablized more. I have learned about taking care of myself, taking care of finances, and have made some friends who I consider to be the closest I’ve ever had.
And as I move into this season I feel, as I have so often written, tremendous gratitude. Gratitude at the health of myself and my family, gratitude for the landlord for having faith in me, gratitude to my friends who are helping to make sure that we have things under the tree for children.
Today Kirk spoke in church about reaching for the divine in everything. For seeing it all around us, because it is us. We are made from the stars. Today was a very personal sermon as it said so eloquently why I am in astrophysics. I suppose I could swing just as easily into quantum physics. But truly it is the nature of the universe that lies at the center of my seeking for what lies at the center of me. The 2 are intricately twined. And as I continue to live and grow, and I look around me, I continue to open up to the true bounty and beauty of life, instead of crumpling in on myself and feeling like life is so miserable and hard.
He quoted Einstein in his sermon, and as I searched for quote (which I couldn’t remember well enough to find) I did find so many that have made me even more convinced of the dual nature of a scientist who makes great leaps, such as those that Einstein did. They did not keep themselves confined by the evidence at hand, and did not take the wonder and spiritual nature of science out of the equation. Instead they made great leaps by opening themselves to the possibilities of all. Something that I have held as a belief for as long as I’ve lived leaped out of the page of quotes:
Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one.
Somehow more each day I am more and more content in a life rich with so much that money can’t buy, and it’s a good thing since we live on the budget of a starving student!
