Invisible

“The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it, the world, and all who live it in.”

Psalm 24:1 (NIV)

      I recently came across a story about Joshua Bell, who was part of an experiment conducted by the Washington Post. Apparently on a cold January morning, Bell played several Bach pieces for about 45 minutes in a Washington DC metro station during rush hour. About a thousand people go through the station at that time. In the time that he played, only six people paused to listen and when he stopped playing, apparently no one noticed. All parents who were with children rushed their children through, even though the children wanted to stop and listen. No one knew that the violinist was playing some of the most elegant pieces ever composed on his $3.5 million violin or that the previous night, he had played to a sold out audience where tickets averaged $100 per seat.

     As I read this article (and verified it on Urban Legends), I began to think about…

how many things we miss as we go through our days with our agenda,

our rushed schedule and priorities.

how much beauty we miss, especially when it is in an unexpected context.

how many people feel invisible because others don’t have time to acknowledge or invest in them.

how many simple things we miss out on because we are preoccupied.

           how different we would be if we looked at interruptions as divine appointments?

What can you discover today?  Just for today, try replacing complexity with simplicity. Try slowing down and stop rushing to get to the next thing. You might find an extraordinary treasure in the ordinary, like a virtuoso violinist giving a concert in a train station.

Reflection:At the end of the day, what did you find?  Did you have a divine appointment disguised as an inconvenience or interruption? Was it a difficult exercise? Can you try it for a week, then two, then a month? Research tells us that a habit is formed when we do something for thirty days. Wouldn’t this be a good habit to form? If you're up to the challenge, email me and let me know how it goes!

 Surprise Chicken Salad

This recipe came from my daughter Heather. It has a surprise ingredient that you don’t ordinarily find in chicken salads. This is a delicious salad to serve for a women’s luncheon. Why not invite a few friends and find an extradordinary treasure among each other?

2 cups chicken breasts, cooked and cut up into small chunks

1 cup diced celery

1 Tbsp chopped onion (I omit this.)

1 cup seedless grapes (red or green)

1 can mandarin oranges, drained

1 tsp. salt

Combine all ingredients. Mix with 1 cup Cool Whip and 1 cup mayonnaise. Add ½ cup toasted almonds before serving. You can also add 1 cup chow mein noodles before serving if desired. Serves 4-6 with other side dishes.