Wonderbringers Newsletter with Monica Parker
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Hello Wonderseekers!
I’m fond of ice cream but I love gelato. Softer. More dense. Richer intense flavour. Just yummier. I remember my first time having gelato. I was about six years old and my mother and I got scoops from a cart that sat in the shadow of Rome’s Colosseum. I recall putting some on my fingers and allowing the famous Colosseum cats to lick it off. I don’t know what flavour I had. Probably something pedestrian like chocolate, as my taste buds were woefully underdeveloped at that point (I ate only spaghetti al burro the entire trip), but I’m certain it was the best gelato I’ve ever had. The thing is, though, for me, every gelato is the best I’ve ever had.
When dining out in Nice, I often skip the dessert offering at the restaurant and finish with gelato from one of the copious gelato stands found across the Old Town. In between the oohs and ahs of delight, my husband will often ask me to rate said gelato, and my response is always the same: It’s the best!
Upon reflection, hours or days later, I may reconsider and be able to rate where my most recent gelato experience should sit in a ranking, but in that moment, while the cold, sweet, deliciousness is being enjoyed, I am so fully present in the moment that the idea of any other gelato is impossible. How could anything be better than what I have right here in my greedy paw?!?
Now this is not typical for me. I am always weighing, judging, comparing just about everything in my life. Is this better or worse? Bigger or smaller? More or less? But something about my love of gelato arrests that judgment and allows me to just be. Wholly present in the moment, consumed while consuming, and utterly delighted.
I think there is a lesson to be found here. It's often said that comparison is the thief of joy, typically in reference to comparing one’s life to other people’s. But comparison is the thief of joy even when we compare our own experiences to each other. I have been trying to harness this revelation in my day-to-day life.
How can I make today the best day? This outfit the cutest ever? These lunch leftovers the tastiest?
I’m still working on the answer, but I think it has to do with slowing down, being present, seeing (and smelling and tasting) with new eyes (and noses and tongues - oh my!), paying deep attention to all the senses that are activated, and feeling gratitude for the moment. (Oh, and avoiding the comparison demon, social media!)
What experience is the best for you, every time?
Some wonderbringers for me this week:
How savoring tiny moments improves health and well-being: Revisit positive experiences daily to enhance happiness.
The Art of Looking: Eleven ways of viewing the multiple realities of our everyday Wonderland.
Listen: No Stupid Questions podcast: How can you stop comparing yourself with other people?
I’m doing some research on podcasts. I’d love to know your favourites and why. Shoot some titles my way!
With wonder,
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