They are beautiful gems, shining for a brief moment before dimming in the reality of life. They are rare, and transient, and precious. They are pure moments – moments unclouded by opinion, or rhetoric, or worries. They are the moments when time stops, and the wonder of nature and life take your breath away.

I have experienced some of these moments before, so I know they exist. But life hasn’t been quiet enough for a while for me to be open to one. I yearn for just a few minutes where life is quiet down to my soul. Where I can look at the sky, and remind myself of my small (and hopefully meaningful) place in the universe.

Sometimes I feel ungrateful wishing for such things. The noise in my life is often due to children’s songs or requests for more pushes on the swing. Honestly, there are many more annoying and stressful moments, but we won’t linger on those here.

This week, I caught a glimpse of a pure moment riding back from the strawberry fields on the bumping “Berry Ferry.” My kids and I were slick with sweat, covered in hay and dirt. And we were each grinning ear to ear, reveling in the feeling of accomplishment after picking two overflowing boxes of rich, ripe, perfect berries.

I close my eyes now as I think of it, hoping for the mental “click” as I attempt to imprint the memory on my brain.

These moments come rarely – not because they don’t exist, but because the reality of life is too loud. The news, the chores, the responsibilities, the traffic, the things we hate to do but must… it all intrudes. And when do catch a pure moment, like a butterfly on our hand, it doesn’t last long enough. I suppose that’s what makes them so precious and valuable.

Catching some pure moments is on my must-do list for this summer. They help to feed my soul, and my writing. I hope you can pause to find some of your own.