Thanks for sharing Elia. Wondering if we delete the word “ordinary” or “extraordinary”, how will the questions change?
“Wonder
Are you living an ordinary life that is your own or one that is an imitation of others?
Are you yearning for an ordinary life you could marvel at or for an extraordinary life that others could admire?
What ordinary moments of your life do you cherish the most?
What does your ordinary life grounded in your own truth look and feel like?
What aspects of your ordinary life call you into belonging with the ordinary lives of others? In other words, where do you feel the binding of your common humanity as you learn to embrace the ordinary?”
When I was contemplating the 'ordinary' in my life, I realised that it was so easy for me to overlook the small, seemingly mundane moments that actually have felt the most fulfilling because of a broader narrative in society where we should be always looking for that something special in ourselves and in life. (When I try to answer these questions without the word 'ordinary', I see in myself a tendency to look for answers that feel more grand, one that captures the bigger milestones in life while forgetting the small, everyday moments.)
At the same time, I realised that the word 'ordinary' could also be mistaken to mean that we are simply keeping ourselves small and hidden in order to conform to the rest of society, which is not something I would want for myself or others. Hence, the inclusion of the word 'ordinary' and the framing of these questions in this way to allow us to discern the difference between these two forms of the 'ordinary'. (:
I love my ordinary life and am happy to keep it this way. Chasing after the extraordinary can be tiring! I've also learnt to marvel at things, even if it's something or someplace I have seen/been to before. It makes me see the same things in a different way, so I don't find life boring :)
Thanks for sharing Elia. Wondering if we delete the word “ordinary” or “extraordinary”, how will the questions change?
“Wonder
Are you living an ordinary life that is your own or one that is an imitation of others?
Are you yearning for an ordinary life you could marvel at or for an extraordinary life that others could admire?
What ordinary moments of your life do you cherish the most?
What does your ordinary life grounded in your own truth look and feel like?
What aspects of your ordinary life call you into belonging with the ordinary lives of others? In other words, where do you feel the binding of your common humanity as you learn to embrace the ordinary?”
That's an interesting observation!
When I was contemplating the 'ordinary' in my life, I realised that it was so easy for me to overlook the small, seemingly mundane moments that actually have felt the most fulfilling because of a broader narrative in society where we should be always looking for that something special in ourselves and in life. (When I try to answer these questions without the word 'ordinary', I see in myself a tendency to look for answers that feel more grand, one that captures the bigger milestones in life while forgetting the small, everyday moments.)
At the same time, I realised that the word 'ordinary' could also be mistaken to mean that we are simply keeping ourselves small and hidden in order to conform to the rest of society, which is not something I would want for myself or others. Hence, the inclusion of the word 'ordinary' and the framing of these questions in this way to allow us to discern the difference between these two forms of the 'ordinary'. (:
Thanks for the context Elia! Makes so much sense now.
I love my ordinary life and am happy to keep it this way. Chasing after the extraordinary can be tiring! I've also learnt to marvel at things, even if it's something or someplace I have seen/been to before. It makes me see the same things in a different way, so I don't find life boring :)
Thank you for sharing ❤️ and yes, chasing after the extraordinary is so exhausting and it doesn’t necessarily make our lives richer!
I need to practice this more often too - to see the same things in different ways. 😊