Word Muse: The Glow of Connection

Do you remember the movie E.T., the scene where he reaches his finger out to the sky and it lights up with a glowing light and then he says, “E.T. phone home”?  That image has been with me this week as I have been reflecting on the word – connection.

I am thinking about people connections. There are family and friend connections that have slipped away.  I think about so many of these folks all the time and wish for a closer connection. Why is it that I have gotten so focused on the production of one day after another that I have found an excuse to be too busy to keep in touch with the people I care about?  On the other hand, I am making exciting new connections with folks across the globe who are committed to their missions in early childhood care and education.  Wow, a global friendship circle, how awesome is that!

A few weeks ago a fortune cookie revealed that I would have an enchanted evening on the next full moon.  So, I looked it up the date and circled January 9^th  on my calendar.  The 9th arrived and I went about my daily routine with growing anticipation, contemplating various scenarios that I might indulge in to make my evening as enchanting as predicted.  Randomly, at 7:00pm I found myself running out of my son’s Cub Scout meeting to the corner Quick Stop to buy more glue sticks. Ha, some enchanted evening this turned out to be!  When I returned, 11 boys and a few parents were busy putting their favorite photos into scrapbooks.  I decided I might as well sit down and join in, and I asked one of the boys to tell me about his pictures.  As he started to tell his stories, he giggled and looked up at me and WHAM! There it was- connection – all I had to do was look deep into his eyes to see the glowing light.  It turns out I had an enchanted evening after all.

And what about connecting to nature?  If you had seen the poor dried-up plant in my office that I finally disposed of (after a co-worker gently pointed out to me that it looked like I hadn’t watered it in about 3 months), you’d be wondering about me a bit, too.  Not too many days after that I celebrated my birthday, December 23, sitting by a camp fire, walking through the prairie grass and singing carols with family and friends.  During a quiet moment I became intensely aware of the crisp cold air that I was breathing in and looked up into the sky.  Majestic and mysterious, the Milky Way beckoned.  Conversations shifted to stars, planets and faraway places.  In that moment I felt it- connection- that strong pull, that awareness that I am somehow miraculously a part of something so grand.  I took a deep breathe, felt inner stirrings shift and settle, ahhh…

So here I am today with my finger pointed out to you, the sparkling yellow “E.T.” light aglow, feeling more open and aware.  Reach out and connect.  I can’t wait to hear from you!

Our next word is Amazement. 

Be bold, choose to be extraordinary, and I will see you next week.