Early Wonder

It turns out I am not entirely ready to let go of Andrea Scher’s delightful book Wonder Seeker. I keep thinking about it. And I thought it might be fun to  do one of the activities together.

It’s based on a simple question: What was your first experience of wonder?

Do you know yours? I had to think about it a bit

My first thought was: seeing the ocean. Who wouldn’t be awed by the ocean?

But I don’t remember ever not knowing the ocean. I was carried to the beach as a newborn and spent my first year on an island.

It must be something in nature, then. Nature is my most reliable source of wonder and awe. But I can’t remember not knowing nature either, it’s always been there.

Then it hit me: WATER SKEETERS.

When I was growing up, we had a creek that ran through our property. It wasn’t a big creek, but it had shallow pools and, skimming on top of the water, there were water skeeters (also called water striders or pond skimmers).

Water skeeters, if you’ve not seen one, look like a daddy long legs spider somehow put on skates that can glide on the surface of the water. They are unexpected and illogical (Why don’t they sink?). When I saw them as a kid, I knew for sure that the world is a wild and magical place. (We also tried to catch them, in our chubby and dimpled hands, but never succeeded).

I haven’t thought about water skeeters for years, not until this exercise from Andrea’s book, but it spurred me to look them up and learn more. Because, really, how do they not sink?

Apparently, their legs are covered in tiny hairs that trap air and allows them to skate on the surface tension of the water without getting wet. They feed on insects that get caught in the water and communicate by causing ripple patterns. Water skeeters can even grow wings in warm temperatures, to travel to other bodies of water if their home waters dry up in summer (as our creek did every year). There’s a lovely video about them here, it seems I am not the only kid fascinated by them.

The more I read, the more I felt like that little kid again—amazed at our incredible planet where bugs can skate to and fro on top of water and even grow wings and take flight! What a world.

And now, a question for you: What was your earliest memory of wonder?

In Wonder Seeker, Andrea asked friends and the answers are lovely: walking through a first snowfall at night, seeing a dog give birth to puppies, riding a bike in that warm wind before a summer storm.

“This question draws out sacred stories, creates intimacy, and is a way to connect and celebrate this mystery of being human together,” Andrea explains.  

Do you have a memory of wonder to share in the comments here? Or you could use this question to deepen your next conversation with a friend, family member, or intriguing stranger. (I wasn’t joking when I said this book would be great for date activities—or with kids, or with pals, or alone). Or consider the question on your own, as a way to revive the wonder you may have forgotten about. I am so happy to remember the water skeeter.

Here’s Andrea’s full interview, and more about the book:
Wonder Seeker: 52 Ways to Wake Up Your Creativity + Find Your Joy.

Hope you have a wonder-full weekend!

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It still feels surreal, and in some ways wrong, to be talking about joy and wonder in a time when so many are struggling (and yet, I know these things to be fuel that is needed by us all). I still recommend World Central Kitchen as a great place to donate to support those in dire need and crisis (in Gaza, in Brazil, in Ukraine, and more).
If you have the means to help, they will put that support to good use.

Another little something to enjoy—my books! Learn more here.