Driving from New Brunswick to Nova Scotia today I was blessed with that simple joy that comes from feeling content to be alive and where you are in a particular moment.
I usually find the drive long and monotonous, with constant checks to the clock.
I’m not sure why, but today this time was different. The music I listened to (throwbacks to high school) may have had something to do with getting me in that state, but for some reason all the scenery outside my window seemed covered in a slightly golden haze.
The pinnacle of this peace, joy, and thankfulness for being alive came while listening to an album with a song from more recent years, Brendan McLeod’s All This Trouble.
His words reminded me that despite the fact that trouble is a part of life, an unavoidable part, I am alive.
That means with every breath I take there’s the possibility of more trouble – be it large or small – to come my way, but also the possibility for joy, love, excitement, and simple moments of peace.
The drive was the embodiment of peace and with it came a renewed love for life and the people in it, with all the troubles they cause myself and others, and all the troubles they endure.
Driving past the little houses nestled among the hills of the Cobequid Pass, I thought of all the lives and families they held; looking at the elderly man driving alone and passing me by, I wished for some moment of joy or happiness to alight on him before he reached his destination.
It’s amazing how if you take the time to be aware, to contemplate, something as simple as driving along a road you’ve driven dozens of times before can be one of the most meaningful and life affirming moments you’ve had in a long, long time.
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