Alysia’s farm girl nature has kept us busy this spring stretching fence and building a chicken coop and goat pen. We sat watching our new layer hens exploring new territory. Alysia pointed out all sorts of fascinating interactions between them. At the same time, I was noticing how insect flight patterns changed near the wooden fence because of the way the fence altered air movements. The world is infinitely complex.

To really understand something is to be open to this complexity. To really fall in love with something depends on finding this complexity fascinating. I can watch water flow for hours. A fisherman can refish a stream over and over because it is always changing. A football announcer can point out the effects of a subtle adjustment by a linebacker. A good teacher is aware of a student coming to class in a different mood than usual.

Explanations often try to simplify things but perhaps we do a disservice to each other and the world when we do this. It’s when we perceive the complexity that we see all the subtle adjustments that make a phenomena such a dance, such a fascinating delight. If we simplify too much, we blind ourselves to all the interactions that create the world’s shape of harmony. If we simplify too much, we still the moving spirit of love.

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