Here's a (not so) secret thing about me: I love the musical Wicked.
This actually might be one of the least interesting things about me, since almost everyone I know loves that show. But when I say I love it, I mean I can never and will never get enough of it.
When I first saw it live, I was in absolute awe. I'd already memorized the soundtrack, and to see it in front of me in all its glory was indescribable.
The beauty of it made me weep. The visuals, the sounds, the story...it was sensory overload in the exact way I never knew I needed.
And now, 16 years later, whenever I listen to the soundtrack, I still cry.
This happened again this week, when I was in the car on my way to an appointment.
It was a full moon in Capricorn on Wednesday, and as I have Capricorn in my 5th house, the focus for me was all about creativity and creative outlets, not for work or money but simply for the pleasure and beauty of it.
And so, to honor one of the ways I experience creative beauty in my life, I popped in the old CD soundtrack I burned a million years ago, blared all my favorite songs, and let the sense of beauty and awe wash over me once more.
I sang loudly through my ugly crying, once again amazed at the perfectly woven together notes and voices, still remembering all of the colors and life I witnessed when I saw it live.
So, why am I telling you this seemingly random story?
Because beauty, awe, and full-bodied joy are such important parts of our everyday lives, and they often don't get nearly the space they deserve.
And, I think we tend to belittle the things that bring us this kind of magic...as though it can only come from "big" things or things that make sense to everyone else or things that have some financial value.
Not everyone experiences the same kind of euphoria I feel when I can blast the Wicked soundtrack and sing my heart out. But that doesn't matter.
The thing that matters is that it moves me, it wakes me up to life and what makes it worth living.
It allows my tears to flow and my heart to soar.
It sparks my heart into hopefulness and love, and it reminds me of all the varied ways I get to feel all of these experiences in my body.
Does it matter that this all comes from something as simple as a broadway musical? Absolutely not.
So, I ask: What brings you a sense of awe, joy, wonder, beauty?
What makes you feel such sincere, unbridled emotions that they spill over into every part of your being?
What allows you to embrace and embody the full magic of living in your particular body, your particular life, with your unique passions and joys?
Whatever that may be for you, please allow those things more space in your everyday.
You deserve to feel—to deeply feel—all of it, as much as you can, in whatever ways that you can.
It doesn't negate the frustrations, the heartache, the pain that are so often involved in living in these bodies...it does, though, give our bodies and spirits some breathing room to then be able to take on the next challenge when it comes.
Where do you find beauty?