Rebuilding the human spirit

There are moments when we stand, facing an ocean or a day, when suddenly we see something. It is the same thing – perhaps the same island, or the same face, or the same idea – but it has shifted. There is no telling how or why, but somehow, it has expanded and trickled in directions and dimensions that we didn’t realize existed. And that thing will never be contained by the same parameters again. We can feel this as it’s happening – like sand shifting underneath our feet. It opens doors, but as we see an opening widen, we realize that we are no longer looking at walls – and we never really were.

Going places – physical travel – has always been what does this for me.  Maybe it happens when I’m away because I am off balance. Sometimes it’s something specific in what I’ve seen in my travels, and sometimes it’s the people I’ve met, but I always return home to a seemingly changed world. Sometimes, however, what rebuilds us is just the recognition of things we haven’t seen – in what we’ve always known. It can happen when standing over the sink, washing the same dish we’ve washed a thousand times. And maybe, at those times, it happens specifically because we are grounded at home. Whatever it is, it rekindles and rebuilds the spirit.

Thought I’d try combining prompts today – I hope no one minds!

Dutch goes the Photo!‘s weekly prompt “The Human Spirit” and

The Daily Post‘s daily prompt “Rebuild”.