Egrets in the water

Yesterday, at the beach, I saw an egret wading in the water. It was standing with a heron, as though they were scheming up a way to capture little creatures together. I had never seen an egret in the ocean, and the surprise of it made me smile. 

My life has felt so cluttered lately. A few of our nights are taken up with the youth, and the others somehow get filled up too. It's not that we waste time- most of the time is spent with dear friends- it's just that we don't put enough value on down time. I need more down time. I need more time to reflect and realize the importance and beauty of the other moments. More time to notice the unexpected gifts. More time to wonder at the egrets in the water. 

"It is only in time and space that beauty blooms. Only in space are events and objects and people unique and significant- and therefore beautiful. A tree {egret?} has significance if one sees it against the empty face of sky. A note in music gains significance from the silences on either side. A candle flowers in the space of night.... There are so few empty pages in my engagement pad, or empty hours in the day, or empty rooms in my life in which to stand and find myself. Too many activities, and people, and things. Too many worthy activities, valuable things and interesting people. For it is not merely the trivial which clutters our lives but the important as well. We can have a surfeit of treasures- an excess of shells, where one or two would be significant." 

Gift from the Sea, Anne Morrow Lindbergh