There’s More to Living Than Being Alive

(quote from Anberlin - Cities Album)

I sat there at my desk with tears streaming down my face as the music swelled through my headphones.

 “There’s more to living than being alive”

 How long had it been since I had immersed myself in music, even for a single song?

 Yes, Instagram reels are full of snippets of many songs, but to listen to a full song, to hear the story being told from beginning to end, uninterrupted, with my attention undivided.

 I couldn’t even remember.

 And in that moment of immersion, free from distraction, I cried; cried because of the sheer beauty of what I was hearing. The way the sounds overlapped and harmonies intertwined.

 “There’s more to living than being alive.”

 We were made for more than to just exist, to go through the motions, to do the things. Yes, the things can be good, and yes, the things, when done intentionally, can even be bringing you closer to your dream.

 But don’t forget to pause once in a while to see the beauty around you, to notice how the sunlight plays along the clouds as they move, to sit for a moment and do nothing but immerse yourself in a favorite song. And remember that some things are beautiful just because.