Little Things in a Big World

Have you ever had a moment where in the midst of life's busyness and confusion, the world just seems right? Life just seems full?

I can now say that I have felt that, even if just for a brief time. You see, today I had my first experience with tears of joy. (Though somehow happy crying was just as ugly as regular crying. Go figure.)

The feeling began when I was sitting in my astronomy class, looking at a series of pictures which started with a bench and then zoomed out further and further until we got to the final picture. The last slide showed an image of clusters of galaxies. It was just a collage of white dots, each of which represented solar systems larger than we can fathom, galaxies such immense distances apart that we could never hope to reach them.

Needless to say, I was reminded of just how vast our universe is.

From there I went to the library and spent an hour surrounded by the scent of aging novels and the kind quiet which lends notice to the sound of rustling pages. Sitting in that library, literally sticking my nose into books to soak in their smells, I felt like I was on the brink of finding something. Yet I just couldn't reach it.

Finally I checked out my book and stepped outside to the warm evening air and the paling sky. I found myself a grassy spot beneath a tree and watched the clouds grow pink.

As I laid there beneath the branches, I felt a few tears trickle down my face. I sat there thinking of how incredibly massive our universe is and yet...and yet there is so much beauty in the tiniest details of life.

Earth is less than a speck floating in the edges of space and yet old leather covers collect fragrances. Clouds are painted with color, grass grows soft and fresh, and roses redeem bushes of their thorns. Butterflies pass with artwork on their wings and people walking by can lend smiles.

When I went back to my dorm I tried to explain how I felt to my roommate, but as I began to express it, I burst into tears. She immediately got up and hugged me and I cried.

I cried because I felt too full to speak.

Even though our universe is too huge to ever fully understand, and our world is microscopic by comparison, life has so much to offer. There is so much to see and discover, and joy can come from the tiniest sights and situations.

I cried today because somehow in spite of how huge the universe is, God still cared enough to give us simple pleasures. He still created our insignificant world with care and attention to the detail, so that in this big universe we can have joy in the little things.