Beyond the Surface

All I saw at first glance was an insignificant snowfall that didn’t yield much.  Looking closer, I saw that someone else used what was available to make something.  Where I had seen the scarcity of “not enough,” someone else had asked, “What can I create from this?” 

In sitting with both these perspectives, I find myself asking where I have been living lately.  Have I only been seeing the lack, the absence of what isn’t there, or have I looked beyond the surface to see possibility?  Have I been lulled into a false sense of hopelessness or been willing to look beyond the fray of feelings to choose something different?

As we enter this season that holds both the weight of darkness and the hope of things to come, may we remember to create our own joy amidst the pain of living; to reach past the false sense of scarcity in order to recognize the abundance that surrounds us.  In our willingness to look beyond the surface of what is, we just might realize the possibility of what can be.  Beautiful things can grow from seemingly meager offerings.