We have lived in Moldova as missionaries for more than five years and I am always wondering if I am still noticing things. The tendency of life is to simply grow adjusted to life around you, not seeing things as you once did. I never notice the housing or apartments. I barely notice the clothing (except when someone is wearing something TOO extreme that I have to shout “Put some clothes on!”I forget about the packs of stray dogs, or the garbage strewn on the street, or the rooster crowing over the fence.

I want to stay AWARE. I want my mind to stop screening all the images from the visual overload and let some stuff through. I have a spam filter for my email, and sometimes I find that it catches too much stuff. I don’t want my Moldova filter to be catching all the info! I need to see people for who they are, notice scenes that are funny or shocking, and to still appreciate the culture in which I live.

My challenge to myself this week–open my eyes, notice the people around me, the sights I see every day. I want to recognize the faces of people I pass by, the lifestyles of my neighbors, and the REAL Moldova.

I think we could all learn something from Andy’s post. We need to live life without a our busy filters on and resist the temptation of putting productivity before people. I can often get caught up in tasks that I think are important and forget about the people that I am doing the task for. You can read Andy’s orginal post here.