the spiritual child

"While gazing at a glorious sunset or watching a silent snowfall, individuals often experience a moment beyond time, a sense of a peaceful Presence. Something vaguely familiar is experienced, which, at first, is beyond naming. Graced moments such as these are often valid experiences of God's presence. They are possible because the individual is calm, relaxed, and absorbed in beauty, therefore open to Ultimate Beauty. Children are habitually receptive and can focus completely on the present moment. They are naturally loving and trusting and have not lost their openness and sense of wonder. These inner dispositions and attitudes are also those of the spiritual child, the prerequisite for entering or participating in the [Reign] of God."
--Peggy Wilkinson, OCDS, author of Finding the Mystic Within You