Last night I was flicking through TV channels and came across the film ‘Mr Magorium’s Wonder Emporium’.  I’ve never seen it in its entirety, but twice now I’ve happened upon it at precisely the moment that Dustin Hoffmann’s character – I assume the eponymous Mr Magorium – says “Life is an occasion.  Rise to it.”  I’m choosing to think it serendipitous, that twice I’ve tuned in just in time to hear those words exactly when I needed a shot of inspiration.  To paraphrase Albert Einstein, we can choose to live as though nothing is a miracle, or as though everything is.  Sometimes we forget just how miraculous being alive in the 21^st century can be.  The technology that allows me to write this and for you read it instantaneously anywhere in the world is a perfect example, if we are prepared to be amazed.  It can be hard to hold a sense of wonder as we get bogged down in our days, taking so much for granted.  But life is much more interesting when we look at it as though we are living in a Wonder Emporium.  So let’s grasp onto reminders whenever and however they may come.  Sometimes the magic of storytelling reminds us to treasure the magic of life (and I don’t mind a little Hollywood manipulation if it leaves me feeling a little lighter spirited).  I imagine that’s the analogy of the whole film, and next time I see it in the schedule I plan to watch it all.  In the meantime, I intend to put those words on my mirror to remind myself.

Life is an occasion.  Rise to it.