My soul gets lonely when I don’t feed it.

I never thought I would describe life that way, but it makes sense to me.

There are days when nothing is really wrong. The appointments have been kept, the errands are finished, and everything that needed my attention has been taken care of.

Still, something feels like it is missing.

I think we can become so busy moving through everyday life that we forget to notice some of the things happening right in front of us.

Come sit with me for a moment.

Let’s sit down on this park bench and chat.

Look up. See how the branches protect us from the sun while reaching out and soaking up the warm rays?

Have you ever really looked at a tree?

The bark races up the trunk of the tree, showing every line of the life it has experienced. Each branch reaches toward the sky. Do you see the leaves dancing in the breeze, shining with happiness in the morning dew?

Close your eyes with me for a moment. Slowly take a deep breath, briefly hold it, and then let go. Do you feel your feet placed firmly on the ground?

Listen. Mother Nature is beginning to have a conversation with her family. Birds call to one another, leaves move overhead, and a breeze brushes across my face.

For those few minutes, nothing needs to be fixed.

Do you feel it? Place your hand on your chest. That feeling feeds my soul.

The birds at my feeder make me smile for an entirely different reason.

Fresh seed barely has time to settle before they begin arriving. I’m convinced they would rather stop at the neighborhood fast-food restaurant than search for their own dinner.

I can almost hear them telling their friends, “She filled it again!”

Those moments make me laugh.

Other little moments seem to find me when I’m out in the world.

I see a mother holding her daughter’s hand as they walk together, chatting away.

A young father pushes his little boy on a swing while laughter fills the air.

Look over there. Someone is trying to reach an item on the top shelf. Another person notices and reaches up to get it for them. As they hand it over, there is a smile and a simple “thank you.”

None of these things are extraordinary.

Or are they?

When life is moving at its normal speed, running errands and thinking about everything that still needs to be done, it can be easy to walk right past them.

I think I walked past these moments for a long time without really noticing them.

Now I see the smiles, the helping hands, and the laughter of a child. I smile at the birds having dinner at their favorite fast-food stop and appreciate the shade of a beautiful old tree on a warm afternoon.

Each of these moments gives something back to me. They bring happiness, connection, and a sense of peace.

Maybe the word I am looking for is serenity.

I used to think the big moments were the ones I would remember most.

Now I’m beginning to wonder.

Maybe the little moments matter most.