What a wonderful world
Ever since I was a little girl I longed for the world to be just like Louis Armstrong's lyrics, seeing the colors of the world so vividly, watching the smiling faces of those passing by, seeing love all around and feeling the pure joy of what a wonderful world we live in. To the contrary this was often not the world I experienced, too busy to notice colors around me, letting my insecurities taint my experiences with others, feeling the need to control everything around me. I would say I was guided very much from my physical body, not from my heart or spirit.
What is one to do when the physical body is damaged, when a cancer diagnosis takes your breasts, robs you of your energy or leaves hardened scars over your body? I used to think that this would be the end, how would my dream of really seeing the world in such beautiful ways come true if I could not go out and seek it?
Well what life has shown me is that I could not have been more wrong. Some of my biggest struggles in life have come within the last year, unable to interact and move how I had always pushed myself to do. What I've found is that when my body became still, my heart was able to speak, while for me her voice has provided powerful messages, I learned that she speaks softly and doesn't compete for attention. She knows that when I have let my control go (whether I initially wanted to or not) she can speak and open my eyes to witness that all of the things I ever wished for are here whenever I want to see them.
I can bet that Louis Armstrong was not trying to control or manipulate his life when he saw all that he speaks about in his song. I'm sure he was still enough to let the world come to him.
One thing I know for sure is that there really is a wonderful world around us, yes people are dying, being abused and struggling with disease; but there are also babies being born, people being loved and others learning life's greatest lessons through their pain.