How a A Moment in Life Turns into Paradise

Yun normally does not take her birthday seriously. It's just another insignificant man-made marker on the mighty endless river of time. But once in awhile, she would do some little things if her mood strikes.

Her sons were at their father’s house on her birthday,  and Yun needed to drop off a few things the boys had asked for. This got her thinking, “ What if I also drop off a surprise?  After all, it is my birthday! My birthday is my gift to them”   The last thought made Yun giggle, she thought it was a clever statement.

She has little time before going to office, so she stopped by a McDonalds on the way, a place they rarely visit, but she knows she can get some milkshake type drinks quickly and the boys like them.

It is 8:30am, stopping at the drive through microphone, her order suddenly sounded odd and not in harmony with the breakfast scene.  Indeed, when a young voice took her order for the drinks, Yun felt apprehension in the brief silence on the other end until she heard: “ Two McFluries, window one please.”

When she handed the cold drinks to her sons, their faces lit up in the morning sun with a bit apprehension as well.   Yun smiled: “My birthday is a gift to you, isn’t it?”   One boy got the gesture and smiled with an understanding nod , the other? opened this mischievous sunny smile pretending he does not care at all.  The brief exchange of hugs and words in the morning sun is eternal and for Yun this moment in life has turned into paradise.

Yun felt the sun shining in her heart brightly, and all worldly things had stopped, rather, had shredded away from her.  Is this what some people experience as ‘time stands still?’  Yun is trying to find a word for this experience of eternity and paradise.  Of course, once words are uttered, the moment has gone and lost its eternal quality. 

 Yun could not help but think of the moment she was born years ago, how her mom and dad experienced that moment of paradise.  How time never stops marching on except in the moment.

If we pay attention to the moment, we could experience that time stands still through many little happenings. It is more of a conscious choice than anything else. Yun chooses to be so.   

And as she continues on to go camping on this 4th July dawn, when she walks into the Rocky mountain decorated land, her one deep breath seems to contain all the beauty in the world.  Once again, the moment in the world becomes a paradise.

Best Regards