Everything potentiates from the aliveness of small things.
This isn’t metaphor. It’s matter.
This isn’t theory. It’s practice.
This isn’t far away. It’s everyday, ordinary, now.
It’s all matter and it all matters.
a button in your hand - a moment with a child - that gulp in your throat - one word of one phrase in one scene - the last thing you said at the meeting - glimpse of your grandmother - your thought about your neighbor - one thread pulled too tight - the dream you see and see and see again - what you know in your belly
Everything we need is already here,
waiting for us to see it, to go into the small and play—
listen, explore, wonder, attune, and create
with all the small matters in our extraordinary lives.
Small frames for exploration
The following frames are starting places for those who want to learn to see more in the small (objects, moments, scenes, feelings, words, ideas, dreams, longings) all around them. I use these frequently in my own creative practice and in my work with others.
I invite you to find and follow where your curiosity guides you and what kinds of small noticing are calling you to play.
small objects
a place to begin
Foundational practice to learn how to:
narrow a frame
find more in what’s small
expand ways to see and listen
notice templates of understanding
delight in what’s ordinary
Also a lovely way to:
explore the dispositions you bring to your learning, work, and living
connect with and ignite creative energies (prompts for writing and other expressions)
identify and practice various modes of thinking (same-different, sorting, cause-effect, part-whole, systems, other)
examine and reflect on processes that support intrinsic curiosity
Adaptable and relevant for all ages, contexts, experiences, and intentions.
Connected resources:
How to Notice (book)
Why small objects? (essay+video)
moments + scenes
find more in what’s already here
Exploratory practice, especially helpful when:
it’s hard to see what’s working or good in a context
things feel stuck, stale, and ordinary doesn’t feel extraordinary
there’s a pull towards external searching and “solutions”
a context is high-stress, messy, or noisy
granular, practical nuance is needed to deepen and make tangible broad frameworks or goals
not all members in a context feel heard, valued, or like their “small” piece of the work makes a “big” difference
Particularly powerful for people who practice in places of practice (educators, caregivers, leaders, facilitators, others)
Examples of practice:
tell it small: A way to support how to see and talk with others about moments of practice.
Small is Enough: A method of small frame observation to invite depth of description about practice.
What do you notice?: An approach to growing community practice around the simplicity of noticing small moments and scenes.
feelings
learn from (not explain or fix)
Layered, playful practice to:
expand notions of feelings beyond aspects of emotion
learn ways to listen to, play with, learn from, and express feelings
notice where you judge, rank, and minimize certain feelings
identify and stretch beyond old belief patterns and practices
find nuance and surprise
access deeply held creative energies
explore various modes and languages of feelings
Ideal for learning organizations, educators, families, and communities who have a strong foundation with social-emotional learning and are looking to more deeply re-imagine their approach with children (and/or adults) and the beautiful potential of all feelings.
Related essays:
beliefs
dissolve us-them, right-wrong, here-there
Delightfully disruptive practice for those who want to:
shift out of either-or thinking
take responsibility for where they judge and separate from others based on ideas
nurture an expanded experience of belonging
allow for repair in a context experiencing division
learn ways to integrate noticing of “beliefs” with other holistic practices
stretch noticing beyond description, into listening and attunement for deeper resonance
Beautiful for any individual, group, context, or community longing for deeper listening, connection, and soulful congruence.
Related essays:
more-than-human
connect to the aliveness of everything
Glorious, creative, expansive practice to:
attune to beings beyond humans—plants, sky, water, spirit, ancestors, dream, skin, soil, soul
go into small bits of image-memory-symbol-color-texture-sound-sensation-knowing
find and listen to your soul’s hum
deepen your creative purpose and expressions
find new dimensions to who you are and why you’re here now
other
unknown
In any context, with any set of materials, for any intention, amidst any conditions, it is always possible to find a beautiful way to see and connect with the small.
In fact, to begin without knowing why (without any effort of thought), to simply hold in your hand (or in your mind’s eye) one small thing… is more than enough to invite aliveness, delight, surprise, and miracles beyond anything we could ever plan.
Explorations of small connected with more-than-human realms, depths of unknowing, and other explorations of dream, memory, sky, skin, and soul beckon for co-creative, multi-modal experiences. Reach out if you feel an inspiration to collaborate.
Current location: texture of arcs | storying | everything
Everything potentiates from the aliveness of small things.
If you’d like to explore a frame of small noticing in your context, or if you have questions or would like to have a conversation, I’d love to hear from you.