I met up for lunch with a dear friend recently in the middle of the City of London, where we both work. It was a grey day with light drizzle, and as I waited at the table by the window, I saw him running across the cobbled street, ducking under the eaves, a big smile on his face.

When he sat down opposite me, I saw the tiny droplets of rain in his hair.

“Oh, you forgot your umbrella today?” I asked.

“I don’t have one,” he replied cheerfully.

I stared at him in surprise. “You know it rains quite a lot in this country, especially in April,” I told him.

He smiled easily at me. “I know, I’ve lived here for two years.”

“So what do you do when it rains?”

The smile was still on his face as he replied, “London is such an amazing city. I walk to work everyday, even when it rains. And you know what, if you know the city well, you will know all the streets where you can shelter from the rain. My route from my home to my office takes me through some of the loveliest alleys and streets in London in the rain.”

I thought to myself then, what a beautiful sentiment! Today, the winter sun was blazing. I thought about my friend who is so attuned to my City and its elements. I cast my eyes heavenwards as I walked under Bank of England’s Eye in the Sky and saw this:

I’ve walked past this everyday on my way to work but never really saw its glory until those words of my friend reminded me to live in full awareness of the world around me.

Live in the NOW and you will see beauty in your present, be it your city, your home or your relationship ❤