Paying Attention—Andrew Peterson

"Most blessings sprout not from the plans we make, but from the soil of their sad ruin."

Dec 18, 2023

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In addition to being the founder of the Rabbit Room, Andrew Peterson is a singer, songwriter, poet, and the author of the popular children’s series, The Wingfeather Saga.

Paying Attention

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Pay attention to the little things. 
Pay attention to the big things too, 
Because both are easy enough to miss, 
And are one and the same more often than not. 

Pay attention to the eerie silence
When the air conditioner cycles off
And the only sound is the creak of the house. 
Pay attention to the clank and rumble

Of the freight train as it wobbles by. 
Pay attention to birds—the ones that tweet, 
The ones that honk, and the ones
That lie dead in the road. Notice them. 

Notice the level of the creek before the rain 
And after. Remember that the water
Rushing around your ankles was a cloud
Not so long ago, a cloud that began

Somewhere in Alaska, perhaps, and before that,
A dark, frigid, and silent subterranean sea. 
Then notice the minnows pecking at your toes.
Pay attention to the turns your life has taken

To bring you to the place you now stand. 
Most blessings sprout not from the plans
We make, but from the soil of their sad ruin.
Watch their slow, unstoppable unraveling,

Their disassembly, the final shudder, and 
Their collapse, and the dustcloud that follows.
Pay attention then to the way your heart
Breathes a sigh of relief when the work

That was never yours anyway is lifted
From your tired hands. Pay attention,
When you clean up the mess, to the treasure
That the wreck unearthed, and give thanks

For your folly and God’s favor.

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