We were at JC Penny's last week getting Jack's first pictures taken. The place was packed with Christmas being only six weeks away so Ellie and I took a walk to escape the madness of soccer moms waiting to get their kids' photos taken. We strolled through JC Penny's and made our way into Rosedale Mall. Just as we got to the entrance of the mall, something caught Ellie's attention. JC Penny creatively installed a light supsended from the ceiling which projects downward onto the floor a rotating JC Penny logo. The image rotates on the floor in beautiful red and whites with wonderful clarity. Ellie immediately, drawn to the technological marketing tool, runs over to "touch" the logo. She then begins to spin around in circles keeping in time with the dancing logo. Spinning not being enough, she decides to sit down in the image. She sits back, leans back and eventually lays down in the spinning glory that is the JC Penny logo. Needless to say she was captivated by this. People were walking in and out of JC Penny laughing at my daughter and the innocent joy she was getting from this simple light. I stood back and smiled at the fun she was having and asked myself why I wasn't laying down and/or spinning with the JC Penny logo. We as adults, lose our sense of wonder don't we? Rarely do we enjoy the sunset, a singing bird, the stars at night or a smile on a child. As Brenning Manning says, "We grow complacent and lead practical lives. We miss the experience of awe, reverence, and wonder." I hope during this Christmas season we all experience a little wonder, a little awe. Enjoy the stars, the sunset, the snow, and the JC Penny logo...
