Observant awe
For most of us, we typically reserve the word “awe” for that feeling of being in the presence of something truly incredible, mesmerizing, or that’s otherwise beyond extraordinary. For instance, a few weeks ago, you probably saw lots of images of people in awe of the northern lights that were viewable to a large portion of the country. People couldn’t believe their eyes. It was stunning.
The truth is, we often think we have to wait for the astonishing or supernatural in order to feel some great sense of awe. And yet, you don’t really need remarkable circumstances to feel amazed.
A recent scientific study aimed to discover more about the average person’s sense of wonder. They determined that the majority of individuals actually tended to experience awe in the ordinary things that surrounded them, if only they took the time to really notice: a friend’s generosity, a delicious meal, or a song that transported them back to a first love.
Within this study, they separated everyone into two groups: one took a weekly walk for eight weeks; the other group did the same but with some specific instructions: tap into a childlike sense of wonder, imagine you’re seeing everything for the first time. Take a moment during each walk to notice the details of a flower or the crispness of the air.
What they found was the awe-walkers felt exponentially more awe with each week. The experiment proved an important point: the more we practice awe, the more we experience it. The richer it becomes. As an added bonus: people also felt less stress or worry and more emotions like compassion or delight.
On this Thanksgiving Day, I’m convinced that grateful people are, at their core, observant people. They are able to perceive and be thankful for even the smallest of gifts, the tiniest of joys. They notice the breath in their lungs, the unique tartness of the cranberry sauce, or the gift it is to hear the nearby laughter of some family or friend you love.
You might say that gratitude starts with awe. Not necessarily for the cosmos or major life events or a feeling of transcendence. But for the everyday blessings we can easily overlook.
However you celebrate this holiday, may you open yourself up to awe wherever you can find it. Every experience of wonder and simple admiration is yet one more seed of gratitude ready to sprout in your life.
