#256: A Simple Gesture

I love how Corey so profoundly puts into words what happens in between the lines, which may otherwise be scribbled over. And I love the deeper meaning discovered... meaning and understanding found simply within tiny moments shared with others. Thank you Corey, for bringing to light the simple yet sincere ways we cross paths and connect with those around us, even if it's through just a small signal. 

- Amanda 

A SIMPLE GESTURE

How one person transmits knowing 

with a single gesture,

The instant it takes to feel seen

and understood,

Contained within a single moment

the love of shared humanity.

There’s a complexity to the human experience that, for me, often seems overwhelming when I attempt to communicate it. So many feelings come up about so many things so frequently, that the prospect of expressing anything in words and speech sometimes seems paltry. Even now, the thesaurus doesn’t have an answer for the exact state I’m working to get across.

It wasn’t my factory setting, this desire to express my thoughts and opinions; I was quite reserved as a kid. But once I did begin to find my voice, I had the desire to do it precisely - with few words, and complex syntax. The more I spoke, the more I understood what I was feeling and thinking. My internal experience became cleaner and organized.

I now find fewer words that are able to describe my inner observations, and I sometimes notice it happening with others, too. Something that didn’t seem to happen before. Is it the limitations of my vocabulary? My creativity? My access to the cosmic library of labelling? Is there some greater reorganization of energy occurring across our species due to the immense societal shift occurring due to quarantines, restrictions, and new ways for everything?

At drop off this morning, my son’s teacher made a joke with a student that only an observing adult might find funny, as she often does. When she noticed I experienced the interaction, she acknowledged with a simple wink. That moment felt like home. It was peace, it was understanding, it was the complete recognition of the mystery of the human consciousness, expressed in a single gesture. It reminded me of the space I felt before I experienced the need to name everything.

It reminded me of the beauty of simplicity; the power of acknowledging someone with pure, honest love. Isn’t it strange and wonderful that it can be done with a thousand words, and also with a single action?

I can’t ever fully understand any one else’s experience, try as I might. But I CAN let someone know I’m with them, sharing a moment in space-time, together.

One wink at a time.