On a scale of one to ten, how would you score yourself on how much “wonder” you have in your life?
Do you live a life of wonder? When is the last time you truly had wonder in your life? Or is your life empty of wonder? Where did it go? How can you get it back?
A child’s life is packed with countless “wonders.” Whether it is Christmas morning or a trip to Disneyland, it seems that life is one experience after another of exploring the unknown, of anticipating the future with excitement. It is a fourteen year old boy who, after playing rough with his neighbor girl for years, suddenly looks at her one day, rediscovers her and sees her differently. It is a sixteen year old girl who can’t wait to dress up for her first homecoming dance. It is a young couple about to discover the wonder of a newborn child for the first time.
Life is packed with wonders. Or it can be. The potential for wonder lives in each one of us.
At the same time life conspires against wonder. Whether it is age, experience, education, employment, family, or other constants in your life, we settle into a repetitive habitual routine and life can lose its wonder. We can go to bed each night at the same spot that we started each day, just one day older.
The passage of the years can remove the wonder that we lived each day as a child.
So how do we awaken the wonder that we have lost? Well, it starts on the inside. No one can force you from the outside to have wonder in your life. You need to choose to have wonder in your world to experience life to the fullest.
Wonder begins with imagination. It is a joy that arises when you can imagine the future and then anticipate it in the present.
What do you imagine the future holds? Have you chosen to accept something that you still have the power to change? Remember the song “Don’t Stop Believing” by Journey. When did you stop believing? What caused you to stop believing?
It is human nature to create habits and then live a life on autopilot. We wake up at the same time, we drink the same amount of coffee, eat the same food for breakfast, we drive to work the same way every day, and so on. Our lives become predictable. Predictability has its benefits, but staleness doesn’t.
In the habits we create, life can become monotonous. And in the process we give up wonder. Why worry about wonder, it can disturb repetitive routines. It can threaten the status quo.
I believe we will have a fuller life if we can keep wonder alive. But to keep wonder alive you have to make the decision to do so. Don’t let others around you be “wonder busters.”
Become a “student” of the world around you, not a “critic.” Critics shut themselves down by negatively judging the world around them. Students thirst to learn and understand. They seek to grow in knowledge. Avoid the “I know it all” syndrome. If you are the smartest person you know, your ability to live a life of wonder is greatly diminished.
Replace the “how?” question in your life with “wow!” If someone shares with you an awesome idea, don’t diminish it with the “how” question. Instead close your eyes and imagine the world with the idea being implemented and begin with a “can you imagine that!” attitude. Wonder first. There is always time to explore the “how” question. Your “how” question at the front end may shut down the wonder in the person sharing as well as your own.
You are benefiting today in so many ways because of the wonder of others who have gone ahead of you who did not worry about the how question at the front end. Their imagination followed by a “wow” response lead to advancements that impact every one of our lives today.
For example, Henry Ford did not spend any time trying to create faster horses. Steve Jobs did not worry about nay sayers who told him his efforts in developing computers was a waste of time. Often the “how” questions shuts down the wonder of “wow.”
Add “imagine” to everything you do. If you are trying to bring about positive change in the world around you, regularly say, “Imagine a world where...” and then share your vision or dream. Then don’t let go of it. Don’t let go of the wonder that is needed to bring about the change you envision.
And I truly believe that you must have wonder in your life to be able to stir wonder in the lives of those around you. If you allow wonder to shut down in you, you will shut down the wonder in those around you. These are important words of advice to parents of young children.
My challenge to you today is to live a “wonder-ful” life. Life can be exciting and full of wonder if you choose to live it this way. Seek wonder in your daily life. Don’t settle for a monotonous routine. We live in exciting times. If you are living a monotonous existence, it is you, not the world that is monotonous.
Don’t settle for monotony in your life. Stir up your life. Awaken the wonder in your life. Then awaken the wonder of the lives around you.
Let your generation be known as one that keeps its wonder alive and one that awakens the wonder in the generation behind you.
Just a “wonder” thought...
Rick Kraft is a motivational speaker, a syndicated columnist, a published author, and an attorney. To submit comments, contributions, or ideas, e-mail to rkraft@kraftlawfirm.org or write to P.O. Box 850, Roswell, New Mexico, 88202 - 0850.
