Source: coffeestainedcashmere.tumblr.com via Emily on Pinterest

Did you ever take a moment while walking somewhere to notice your surroundings through your senses?

When we cease the planning, judging, remembering and wishing that goes on in our minds, we are sometimes able to notice how beautiful the simplest things are that surround us every day.

It was drizzling slightly when I walked back from having dinner with a friend one evening. I started to notice the raindrops on the stream next to me and realized how beautiful they were. They sparkled on the water, bathing in the dimmed light of the lamppost above the stream, and it  hit me: the littlest things in life are what make life worth living.

For a moment, I reflected on the other little things that constitute a day in my life: the hug of a friend, a cup of tea, the short conversation with a girl in one of my classes, the warm smile of a professor and the raindrops falling ever so quietly on the surface of the water. I couldn’t help but be overwhelmed with appreciation and gratitude for the beauty of such moments. My awareness of their impermanence caused me to become even more aware of the moment before me, and I cherished it all the more.

As I walked back to my dorm, I had this feeling inside of me: it was going to be okay.

Everything was going to be okay.

From some internal wisdom or guidance, I suddenly knew this was where I was supposed to be at this very moment. I knew that there was nothing wrong with me and that there was nothing to be afraid of. Ever.

I realized that the universe has a way of guiding even the most distraught human being. Even those who are so lost in the story of their lives—the story they have created in their minds—they are unable to wake up and be aware of what is going on in this very moment.

The craziest thing about all of this? This moment is our life.

All of these little moments that pass throughout our everyday lives are what constitute our lives. This moment. Here and now. This is your life. Not tomorrow. Not yesterday. Not a month from now. This is it.

This moment is all we will ever have.

Natasha Crespi grew up in Oneonta, N.Y. and resides in New Paltz, N.Y. She is currently attending SUNY New Paltz and is majoring in French. She loves meditating, yoga, performing random acts of kindness, music, minimalism, traveling, meeting new people and experiencing new cultures.  She is young and full of life. Natasha is eager to discover her own path in life in order to continue to help other human beings and bring more peace and compassion into this world we live in.

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Ed: Sara Crolick & Brianna Bemel

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