Weekly Wisdom – What is Precious?

Do we even know what precious is? We may have heard that “every moment is precious.” But do we treat it so? Or can it just be one more monotonous time to drift through?

My wife, Josephina, has come to call her grandchildren her “precious delights.” She doesn’t remember when she came up with this term, but I see the sparkle in her eyes when she says it. I look for what is precious for me as well, for the sparks in my life of value, gratitude, and appreciation.

Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?
                                                                                                              — Mary Oliver

Design Perspective

Ah, the announcement that my life is precious. It resonates as I hear it, but I don’t always fully act as though I hold it as precious. One meaning for precious is something of great value, that is not to be wasted or treated carelessly. I must admit that in too much of my life I have not held it as precious. I do so much more now, as I enter my later years.
I was a parent to four children, and did not hold every moment as precious, though I find myself with a greater appreciation of my children and grandchildren as a grandparent. So much more now that is precious in my life that I didn’t particularly recognize earlier.

One of the blind spots of our culture in my experience is living in a reality that seems infinite. We forget that we are finite. That we are born, have some time, and will die. In my finitude I appreciate the time I have, the miracles of life, love, and being able to experience all of it. The moments with light, and also the dark moments. It produces the mood of sweet urgency, the urgency to live fully and not defer it to later.

A definition of the word precious is also a form of address for a beloved person. A precious one. I must admit that we have a little dog, Luna, that I experience as precious to me. I call her “bug” with affection. In the Lord of the Rings the mishappen creature Gollum addressed the ring of power that drained and addicted him as “my precious.” It showed the dark side of becoming attached to something as precious that’s the opposite of being blessed. I have had some of those in my past work habits, such as my devotion to sacrifice for hopes in the sky.

In the ancient Chinese wisdom of acupuncture there is a point name that includes a character representing a fetus in the womb. It shows that something precious inside of us can inform our choices. It sits next to our source of flexibility. We have seeds of the precious inside of us, precious miracles of life outside of us. I am learning to see them more clearly, more openheartedly, and as the poet Rumi said: to appreciate the extraordinary beauty that emanates from the most simple act and ordinary object.

What is precious to me, what I appreciate with deep gratitude. Awakening and being able to stand. My conversation with my wife every day, creating life and it’s music and wonder together. How my dog greets me with undeserved enthusiasm. Being surrounded by the wisdom of the ages in my library, and the texture of book pages in my hands. Great conversations with those I care about, and the privilege of learning with others. Love with members of my family. And of course coffee at my favorite diner, always in a booth.

And I continue to learn more every day that what is precious has always been there.

What is precious to you?