Finding Magic In The Ordinary

Hey friends.

Recently one of my readers asked to read about coming off a "high" of happy things and going back to a regular, more simple routine, and wow I thought that was so relatable. I feel like I'm constantly walking in and out of that season of life. This is especially relevant for anyone who has had a summer full of freedom and adventure, but the return to school and normalcy is right around the corner. So here it goes, all my thoughts and experiences on the ordinary.

I like to compare the feeling to taking the best vacation ever, but dreading the long, boring drive back home. I remember in high school all my friends would go off to church camp for a week in the summer and come back on a high for a little while, but then simmer back down to longing to be away at camp. There's that feeling of wishing a moment could last forever. Life on the beach or in another country just seems so much better than regular life at school or work. 

So imagine being on your favorite vacation for six months straight, and what it would feel like to come back afterwards. That's what my story looks like. My favorite place is Disney World (big surprise), and there is a real life magic that lives there. When I came back from living there on my first Disney College Program, I came down hard. Everything seemed a shade duller than my life in Orlando, and I felt like I had taken two steps backwards. It wasn't even about leaving the physical place, but rather leaving behind a season of adventure. I discovered a wild piece of myself there, and going back home made me feel like I was going back to a less exciting, normal version of myself. I was absolutely miserable because I missed a magic that was always right in front of me, so ingrained into my everyday life. Resentment toward my current circumstances rose inside me, and I unintentionally compared everything to a "better" season of life. 

The thing is, the happy moments are so hard to come down from because I think we're hardwired with a sense of adventure. I love that God created us in His image, because He is a pretty wild God. Therefore we're created wild at heart; and once that spirit of adventure is awakened in us, it's hard to tame it. We can't get enough of the moments that make us feel free and alive. The feeling of living your best life is addictive. 

Going back to normal is like a slap in the face. It's this questioning of your entire life and wondering why am I doing this when I could be doing that? Almost everyone I know who has spent time away either on an internship or camp or some type of adventure other than their regular routine has felt this way too.

I thought for a long time that I was in the wrong place in life because I felt those things. Surely God would want me to be at a high as much as possible right?

My views have changed a bit on that since I've learned the value and meaning of seasons. The most beautiful and painful part of life is that nothing ever stays the same. Now I think a season of ordinary still holds a certain type of magic, but we miss it because it's harder to spot. Sometimes we have to dig deep and work harder to find it. 

It's found in quiet moments, simple moments... little moments where joy would not normally be found. I think that's what makes it so special. Anyone can find happiness skydiving, but it's a sweet sort of thrill to find happiness in real good cup of coffee on a rainy day. It's in not having to set an alarm or reading for fun in a bubblebath. Maybe it's printing new photos at Walgreens to hang in the office or checking everything off a to-do list with the most colorful pens you own. It's in unexpected sunsets and the kindness of strangers. 

Other times I think God gives us the challenge of making our own magic in the midst of ordinary. Change up the routine and do something crazy! It might not be backpacking through Europe, but it can be a day trip to the next city over. Or maybe TP a friend's house (just kidding?). At school, my friends and I would make spontaneous trips to New Orleans all the time or even just driving around with the windows down screaming High School Musical was enough to make life a little more exciting. 

Of course, you can throw everything I say out the window because you can look at my life now and say how could it be boring... I live in freaking Disney World. But it's funny because these days I find myself craving the ordinary. Routines give me such a sense of peace and satisfaction. I'm finding the most joy in a simple, slower life built of moments in between the big stuff. I think it's because I get these sweet moments with God that remind me He can be found anywhere. He's not just in the high's of life, but in the in-between and the lows. And thank goodness, right? We'd never find life worth living if we just waited for the big stuff. 

So my sweet friend, I don't know if that answered the question at all, but I guess what I'm gathering from all that I wrote is that the "high" of happy things doesn't have to end. It just looks different and takes a little bit more work to find. A season of normalcy does not have to mean mediocrity. There's a season for adventure in the great wide somewhere, but then there are the more frequent seasons of magic in ordinary days (which is a reference to both Beauty And The Beast and the less widely known Hallmark film The Magic Of Ordinary Days).

Let me know if you ever need ideas on where to get started! And be sure to write me and let me know where you find the magic, so I can be sure to look for it there too.