I’ve often thought about and talked about ecstasy and the ways one can achieve it. Here is an example of one way it can happen.

I picked my daughter up from school today. We greeted each other like always—we gave each other a kiss, then I inquired, “Hi baby, how was your day?” To this she replied, “It was fine.” Then I asked her for a bit more information to fill in the blanks.

I turned south onto Pacific Coast Highway, heading towards home, and began to focus on the 50 items on my ‘to do’ list, all of the items running through my head as I attempted to figure out how to accomplish them in a timely way. I felt tired, and my shoulders heavy as I made my way through the traffic.

Then something happened that stopped me in my tracks. In her contented voice, my daughter started to sing to herself, “I’m singing in the rain, just singing in the rain. What a glorious feeling. I’m happy again…”, the title song from one of her all-time favorite movies. In that moment, her sweet song knocked me out of my head and into the present moment.

I looked out onto the ocean, and all at once, I saw how beautiful it looked under the bright blue sky and wispy clouds flying softly by. As I looked at the road ahead, we began to glide through traffic. Then, the world suddenly seemed like it was standing still. At that moment, I realized I was at peace, and so was the world around me. My heart felt cracked opened and in that moment, while driving, with my beautiful daughter in the back seat, I felt a wave of ecstasy burst out from my heart and fill my mind and body, then it flowed outward. The love I felt for my daughter and for the moment was so immense that it melted the tension that was so present in my shoulders only moments before, vanishing into bliss. Tears filled my eyes as I thought to myself, This is a perfect moment.

Later on that evening, I reflected on what had happened and the wonderful evening my daughter and I had afterwards, and it occurred to me that the “magic” that allowed me to enter into the state of ecstasy was actually quite simple. It took surrendering to the present and being grateful for what I have.

To your Ecstasy!

Love all around…

This blog, and all my writings, are explorations into the wondrous, deep, and ever-evolving process of living, loving and growing. My intention with Pebbles for Thought, is to empower and uplift, one post at a time.