Sign up for our free newsletter:

 1 of 2

When Cindy and I were first married, we received a $3.95 paperback book as a gift from a wise, older man. He was a seminary professor who was well-versed in Greek and Hebrew, but his gift was an unpretentious book of stories by Arthur Gordon titled, A Touch of Wonder. "This book has meant as much to me as any other," our friend said. "Read it and celebrate the gift of bright encounters together."

The book is full of simple things. Stories of Gordon's children. Tales of meteor showers and days spent fishing. In the introduction, Gordon writes about the underlying theme: "Almost always there's a lot more to these commonplace happenings than meets the casual eye—and most people would find a lot more in them if only they would pause and look and feel and care just a bit more than they do."

Now, nearly 20 years later, we both recall Gordon's words and marvel at the truth they contain. It's through our marriage that we've each encountered windows to the world that, without the other person, might have been shuttered from view. And despite what we expected, our most cherished moments aren't just the biggest ones—such as our wedding day or the days we brought children into the world. We've found that the simple events, the daily encounters, have offered the richest experiences. Before we met, for instance, my idea of classical music was the Moody Blues' 1967 hit, "Nights in White Satin." But when we became friends, and shared our music collections with each other, we listened to one of Cindy's favorite musical pieces, Rachmaninoff's "Piano Concerto No. 2." Through that single window a vista to the wonders of classical music was opened for me. Cindy's musical tastes also ran the gamut, but until our journey together began, they didn't include the spiritually flavored folk/rock vistas of Van Morrison, Bruce Cockburn, or Brooks Williams. Since I introduced her to them, these musicians have become a part of her life.

Traveling has afforded us other windows through which to peer. Cindy has a passion for enjoying the natural world—the starfields of a desert sky, the awkwardly shaped cacti in Joshua Tree National Park, a red-tailed hawk spiraling upward on a thermal. On one occasion, we carved out an afternoon to go hiking in Michigan along a dune-drifted shoreline. Another time, we opted to journey to the town where I grew up. We trekked back to the vacant lots where I played baseball, visited old schools, and picked our way along the railroad trestle I walked daily as a kid. I shared memories that helped Cindy make more sense of my "story." These times spent together forged deeper bonds between us, helping us learn a little more about what makes us who we are.

next page... |  1 of 2

				Try an Issue of Today's Christian Woman Free! Name Street Address City/State/Zip E-mail Address No credit card required. Please allow 4-6 weeks for delivery. Offer valid in U.S. only. Click here for International orders. If you decide you want to keep Today's Christian Woman coming, honor your invoice for just $17.95 and receive five more issues, a full year in all. If not, simply write "cancel" across the invoice and return it. The trial issue is yours to keep, regardless. Give Today's Christian Woman as a gift Buy 1 gift subscription, get 1 FREE!

RSS Feed   RSS Help