God doesn’t just want us to be practical.
Life has so much more to offer than usefulness.
I believe we are meant to truly enjoy it.
To find beauty in the sunsets (and in Arizona, oh boy do we have the best).
To savor the delicious chocolate cake.
To dance to the background music.
To literally stop and smell the roses.
This is hard for me.
Because I’m a practical person.
I like things to have a purpose, a meaning.
But I think I’m getting better at enjoying the beauty of life. Just because.
To get from point A to point B on a swirly twirly pathway, instead of sprinting.
Because one way of traveling leaves me refreshed and renewed. And the other way leaves me exhausted.
In D&C 59:18, the Lord so gently reminds us that things on this earth were made:
“Both to PLEASE the eye and to GLADDEN the heart”.
And in the next verse:
“To strengthen the body and to ENLIVEN the soul.”
The earth was created.
We aren’t living in a brown and gray abyss that will “work just fine” for living arrangements.
Instead, our Savior spent time creating beauty and intricacies.
Why?
He probably enjoyed creating it. He probably enjoyed the challenge and the beauty of the process.
But of course, He also wanted us to feel this joy.
To have our souls enlivened and gladdened and pleased.
Life is tough. There are lessons to be learned and trials to be endured.
But life is also beautiful and miraculous and delicious and harmonious and transcendent.
We need practical bread for our body.
But we also need beautiful light for our soul.
Happy Studying!
-Cali Black
