“It is a serious thing just to be alive on this fresh morning in a broken world.” Mary Oliver.

The world is broken. Yup! but if that is all we focus on, it is all we see. We are here on this planet for a very limited time, and not one of us has the playbook or the timetable. Each day is a gift. 

Last week I experienced the loss of two people: a friend and an esteemed acquaintance. Another dear friend is celebrating remission after a torturously long and rocky road, and another suffered a stroke. I have been thinking about the preciousness of life; about the good in the world, about beauty, gratitude, and love. When I focus on each day as a treasured gift, I craft it differently. It is, after all, mine to design. Focus shifts away from the steady, toxic stream of news to the outrageous beauty that exists just outside my window. It shifts to the blessings I receive each and every day; to the friends and family that enrich my life beyond imagination. 

Often we get caught up in busy-ness, daily dramas, news and noise. The little things that spark joy in our daily lives have slowly faded away. There are moments that can bring us back to ourselves; a song that reaches deep into our soul and brings back memories, pausing for a moment, just to inhale the earthy, sweet sigh of Petrichor, being witness to a spectacular sunrise or sunset…just being for a few precious moments, noticing our breath in gratitude. We are alive! Taking the time to set the table with grandmother’s best china and light a candle for dinner – even if you are dining alone. Plucking a single, beautiful wildflower to grace your table. There are so many ways to bring that spark back to life, so many ways that glimmers show up in our lives if we look for them. 

How many of the battles in our lives do we suffer through needlessly? When our focus is on the negative, we give away our energy and our joy. Yes, that negative is indeed there. It always has been and always will be. Is it our duty to work for change, and do what we can, where we can? Absolutely! But then we need to let go. It is in the letting go that we sometimes get stuck. The Serenity Prayer comes to mind. 

Here are a couple of women who inspire me as examples of living in the present, in joy and gratitude.

Yesenia Madas experienced a tumultuous childhood, living in poverty in the Bronx. She fought a rare and aggressive form of cancer and became a leader in higher education. Her story is one of hope and resilience. She emphasizes finding “glimmers” of joy in each day. Yesenia nos the power of community and the necessity for self-compassion. After an initial college rejection, she went on the earn a Ph.D. in Educational Leadership from Rowan University, and is a dynamic leader in higher education. She is known for her extensive experience in counseling and student affairs. Yesenia is currently Vice President of Student Affairs at Brookdale Community College in Lincroft, New Jersey. She serves on various boards, including Monmouth Medical Center, NJAC Women’s Network, and the Higher Education Resource Development Institute, and is actively involved in initiatives such as Habitat for Humanity and the American Cancer Society. Her passion for empowering students and fostering learning environments makes her a catalyst for positive change in higher education. Her “glimmers” shine through. 

Kaye Rubio immigrated to the United States from the Philippines, where she earned a B.S. in Occupational Therapy from the University of the Philippines, to support her family through a financial crisis and her father’s cancer diagnosis. She settled in Atlanta,Georgia, working as an occupational therapist, navigating much adversity, including discrimination, isolation, and fear. She says she found peace by slowing down and focusing on “glimmers” – appreciation of the present moment and helping others despite intense stress. Kaye earned a Master of Health Science in Occupational Therapy from the University of Florida and a PhD in Philosophy in Occupational Therapy from Texas Woman’s University. Kaye is an Assistant Professor at the Tampa Bay Occupational Therapy Program and a member of the Healthcare Panel at the University of South Florida’s Minorities in Medicine Program. She is currently doing research in Oncology, Rehabilitation Medicine, and Allied Health Sciences, and is an occupational and lymphedema therapist at Palms of Pasadena Hospital. She says her “glimmers” got her through tough times. 

Some final thoughts…

“To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human history is a history not only of cruelty, but also of compassion, sacrifice, courage, kindness.

What we choose to emphasize in this complex history will determine our lives. 

If we see only the worst, it destroys our capacity to do something. If we remember those times and places—and there are so many—where people have behaved magnificently, this gives us the energy to act, and at least the possibility of sending this spinning top of a world in a different direction.

And if we do act, in however small a way, we don’t have to wait for some grand utopian future. 

The future is an infinite succession of presents, and to live now as we think human beings should live, in defiance of all that is bad around us, is itself a marvelous victory.”

~Howard Zinn~