In a world where we are constantly receiving messages about the importance of being special and unique, and told that we ought to stand out from the crowd – it’s refreshing to reclaim the idea that being ordinary is something worth celebrating.
To be ordinary means being ‘common’ or ‘typical’ and to be ‘like others’. In this day and age, ‘ordinary’ is often an insult. People want to be seen as individuals and stand out from the crowd. We don’t want to be ordinary, instead we prefer the opposite, which is to be extraordinary!
Yet, beware of such duality, the extremes of ordinary and extraordinary. What might be celebrated as extraordinary one day might be quite ordinary the next. Human striving is at the heart of dissatisfaction. Thus, it is a worthwhile task to accept our very ordinary-ness. To do so requires humility and compassion – for oneself and for others. Afterall, human beings are not really all that different. We all experience physical and emotional pain, our lives are all impermanent, and we all share a wish to belong.
To find pleasure in the small, ordinary tasks of life is never as easy as it sounds, and yet this is the path to happiness. Letting go of striving and simply being present. Only then might we discover the extraordinary beauty of the natural world, the simple pleasures of the breath and being here now. Ordinary isn’t less than. It is connected-to.
May you be present in the moment and may you enjoy the simple pleasure of being ordinary today!
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