What struck me was that if you can take a white-enamel household pot and begin seeing it brand new each time, you can do it with anything. If there are 100 ways to see an ordinary white pot, imagine all the possibilities for viewing with fresh eyes an "average" child, an "average" marriage.

Gale was telling me a story about relationships.

Each time the pot was just being the pot, but as the same time it reflected everything that was around it. It was Gale's ability to be present to see, really see, to recognize the sacred in this seemingly mundane pot that made the difference.

"I don't look at objects the same way anymore," Gale said.

"Objects have begun to look back at me."

Sue Bender, Everyday Sacred