It’s Sunday, so I wax a bit spiritually today. It’s okay. I’m a rather strong Christian finding peace and strength in our beliefs. This post may not resonate with you and that’s okay. Take it in and let yourself wonder.
For most of my life, I’ve seen spirituality as one part of a larger tapestry—woven gently alongside my interests in psychology, teaching, and personal growth. It’s been there, steady and meaningful, but not always at the center.
Lately, I’ve been wondering:
What if spirituality isn’t just a thread in the story?
What if it’s the lens through which all the other threads come into focus?
This question didn’t arrive with a flash. It came quietly—through moments of reflection, walks in nature, and in the stillness of retirement. The deeper I listened, the more I realized I may have been looking at things the wrong way around.
🦍 The Gorilla I Nearly Missed
Like the famous “invisible gorilla” experiment I discussed in my previous post, I was so focused on the mechanics—of teaching, thinking, and achieving—that I nearly missed what was walking straight through my life: the steady presence of Spirit. I was busy counting passes. Focused. Productive. But blind in a deeper way.
The gorilla? That spirituality may not be an accessory to the mechanics—but the very fabric through which many fibers flow.
🧠 Seeing the Psychology I Taught Differently
I’ve always loved cognitive science. I’ve taught about memory, perception, and neurological impacts for years. However, viewed through a spiritual lens, these concepts become more than just information. They become sacred awareness—our way of holding, releasing, and healing.
How we learn becomes more than mental mechanics. It becomes transformation of the self. An awareness of who we are—at the soul level.
👩🏫 Teaching as a Spiritual Practice
In my earlier years, I focused on engagement, outcomes, and scaffolding knowledge. These are still important. But what I didn’t always see was that teaching itself is sacred space. Now, I see it differently: to teach is to open a door. To be fully present. To reflect the worth of a student back to them, and help them to see their sacredness. To open eyes to the worth inside and outside.
That’s spiritual work.
🌿 Retirement, Aging, and Deepening Awareness
Retirement slowed my pace, but not my growth. If anything, it’s revealed how much more there is to notice—to feel, to become. We often equate purpose with action. But perhaps the deepest shift is from doing to being.
We’re trained not to see that as valuable. Our social norms tell us our worth diminishes when we stop working. Those of you retiring, or near retirement, know this, when we stop to be, and open ourselves to the sacred we become more worthy and appreciate the glory of God around us.
That’s the gorilla; we stop counting the bounces and see clearly again.
🔍 A Shift in Perspective
So here’s where I land:
Spirituality isn’t a topic I write about occasionally. It’s not the decorative border around the page.
It’s the ink that gives meaning to everything else I teach, learn, and share. It’s the God Moment we spot when we look at the frame. So, maybe take a moment today to notice a “God Moment” in your life and wonder what the gorilla is that you may have missed.
📖 To Close –
“In Him we live and move and have our being.”
— Acts 17:28
