Art can warm even a chilled and sunless soul to an exalted spiritual experience. Through art we occasionally receive-indistintcly,briefly—revelations the likes of which cannot be achieved by rational thought.

It is like the small mirror of legend: you look into it but instead of yourself you glimpse for a moment the Inaccessible, a realm forever beyond reach. And your soul begins to ache…

ALEKSANDR SOLZHENITSYN

“The Nobel Lecture on Literature”

I picked up an old book from the shelf yesterday. It was the perfect book for my today. I love when old books resurface and bring you yet again new revelations. The book is titled “Windows of the Soul: Experiencing God in New Ways” by Ken Gire. The author challenges us to look at our day thoughtfully and to pause and reflect and see “windows” throughout it that point us to intimacy with God. These windows are normally overlooked or in unexpected places and ways but when seen, offer a glimpse of the beauty and complexity of life.

As I’ve been reading it, I’ve been looking for windows. And yesterday I saw one through my daughter. It was her first time going to an art museum and the experience was filled with windows that let me peer into her soul. As we walked through the rooms I saw a glow in her face. She was talking excitedly. I could tell that she was loving it. I had a map of the museum and a pen and told her that I like to write down artists that I see and like so I can look them up later. She latched onto the idea! Every piece that caught her eye she asked to to write down. “Mom, write this one down. Mom, did you write it down?,” she would ask. By the end of the museum, the paper was filled with my chicken scratch of all the pieces of art that she had liked. It was a window. My Reeve girl doesn’t tend to get excited in public places. She tends to stick close to me and not talk. But in this museum, she was how she is in our home or in a familiar place. She was enthralled.

As a parent, when you get a glimpse of something that makes your child light up, you stop, you listen, and you learn. You are offered a rare glimpse into what makes them unique and if you can catch it, you can help steward it. A few months ago we had read a children’s book about Louise Bourgeois (her life and art are fascinating if you have a chance to study her) and when we walked into one of the galleries, we saw they had one of her spiders on the wall. We were all enthralled. When you study about a person’s art and then see it in person, it’s hard to explain just what it makes you feel. And when you know a background of the story that the art represents, you become connected to it.

Today, I got to see a piece of the background that makes my daughter who she is. And I saw a piece of her father and I in it as well. It reminded me of what is good about life. And about the art that is in each person if we can see through the moments that are windows.

Books mentioned

Windows to the Soul: Experiencing God in New Ways, Ken Gire

Louis Bourgeois (Little People, BIG DREAMS), Maria Isabel Sanchez Vegara