Everyday Canvas

Heaven on Earth

Prompt: What does "Heaven on Earth" mean to you?

==

Heaven on earth is not a place but a grace.

It is not where but when:

When two opposites agree, at least agree to disagree,
When all basic needs are met,
When children feel loved and properly cared for,
When everyone receives the respect they deserve,
When armies drop their guns and pick up paint brushes, musical instruments, or pens instead
When people everywhere feel good about themselves without stepping on one another
When each person is independent and free to do what he or she likes to do without disturbing someone else
When we all get together to make this earth a better place.

As for me, I find heaven when I feel compassion for someone I expected to dislike or hate.

I find heaven in watching the full moon, a colorful sunset, ocean waves at the beach, a beautiful scenery, flowers, plants, and the antics of animals.

I find heaven in losing my sense of time while being completely enraptured and caught up in what I am doing and working on the many possibilities of the task at hand.

I find heaven in the mystery of a sudden concept, which I might not recognize where it came from--especially a writing idea--possibly after seeing it in a word, a phrase, a picture, or a sound, and then making it my own. Heaven, then, becomes being so saturated with this work, this idea, that past, present, and future meld into one with a passion and excitement so powerful that I keep jumping ahead of myself.

Then, when I am tired, my heaven emerges again when I take refuge in the healing touches of my family and loved ones inside my quiet, humble home.