I know it is icy underfoot but please don’t forget to look up! Sometimes we are so focused on keeping ourselves from falling, or are engrossed in finding out all the details of what our wonderful walking friends are doing or are planning that we forget to enjoy that momentary break in the clouds or the amazing bird life just above us. These bleak January days (today is actually known as Blue Monday – the grimmest day in the year) can get even the most cheerful person down. It is cold and grey and not a lot of fun. But if you take a moment to look up, I mean both in actuality as well as figuratively, you will see something unexpected. There might be a small patch of blue sky; there could even be a moment of sunshine. What is stuck in that tree? Is it a wasps’ nest, or a paper bag? Are those buds at the top of the magnolia and will they survive the deep freeze? Are the geese overhead finally flying south or are they just heading to the lakeshore for bread crusts? Why are there so many fat robins in that tree? Don’t they fly south for the winter?
Whatever you see will be a distraction – and it won’t be political or contentious. It will give you a new point of view and make you think about the world in a small but fresh way. We all desperately need this sort of distraction at the moment, so give it a try. All you have to do is look up.
