According to Brene Brown, awe and wonder are places we go when it’s beyond us. In Atlas of the Heart, Brene Brown recounts how Rachel Carson wished to gift every child a healthy dose of wonder to protect them from the boredom and disenchantment of later years when adults can become preoccupied with artificial things and become alienated from their inner strength. Awe has the additional qualities of making us feel small, of wanting to stand back and simply observe, allowing what is to take center stage and shine in all it’s glory. What awe and wonder share is the power to unite us to one another when we seem small compared to the spectacle put on by the grand forces of the universe.

Wonder fuels our passion for exploration and learning, for curiosity and adventure.

Brene Brown
Atlas of the Heart

The magic of fireflies whose bodies that light up and float in the night air among tree branches, shooting stars, fungi that knit and connect and decompose and glow in the dark, the northern lights which have blessed us here in New York this season, the child’s first word, whether it be a monkey –of all possibilities–, or light, or the more common ma-ma, when we tune in, each can feel magical and make us ooh and ah, or leave us speechless. Developing the capacity to identify and explore these emotions and understand what sparks them in our daily lives is important for putting fuel in our tank and also for maintaining perspective on what matters most.

Join Marcia Eames-Sheavly and me this fall to enjoy two luscious days exploring the power of awe and wonder at the Light on the Hill Retreat Center nestled in Upstate New York.