20070228

the blessings of the mundane

life is surreal,
or at least it often feels that way.
especially before the pivotal moments
and in the quiet, introspective ones.
it feels most real in the trivial and the mundane.
there is something unflinchingly real about
washing dishes,
eating breakfast cereal,
cleaning a toilet,
carrying my daughter,
or digging in a garden.
i believe that we must need such things,
that these trifling routines of life are both essential and sublime
for those wandering in a finite world.
They are a ground,
a baseline that allows us enjoy the rest of life in peace,
not desperate for ever higher highs,
not collapsing in despair at our lows.