Spirit Matters: The mall is a forgotten mecca for heart connections

This past week, I went to Cincinnati with several family members.

It was a quick but full few days away from my typical routine.

Believe it or not, one of the highlights of the trip was going to a living, functioning mall. Remember those? Many of my Generation X peers can attest to the formative effect malls had on our lives. Whether we went with our parents to shop for clothes or went with friends to socialize, the mall was an entirely unique ecosystem of its own, with assorted kiosks, seasonal décor and entertainment, celebrity visits and food courts.

One memory that will stick with me forever is the scent of the roasted almonds coming from the kiosk that appeared in Eastland Mall in Bloomington every holiday season. It was located next to Gloria Jeans Coffee Beans in the Bergner’s wing. The aroma of freshly roasted almonds blended with the richness of the hot coffee wafting from the nearby coffee shop is what dreams are made of. All I have to do is picture that kiosk in my mind, and I am transported back to that bustling, energetic place once again, with all of its sensory delights.

These days, my heart aches a bit every time I drive by these mostly abandoned gathering places of my youth. I can’t help but hope that someday they will be reborn into the social meccas they once were. But even if they were redone, it wouldn’t be quite the same.

All things change, and that is one thing I noticed about the mall in Cincinnati – at least the part I was in. The color scheme was a neutral off-white, and the storefronts seemed to be soulless copies of one another, blending in with the overall look of the mall’s interior. It all vibed well with the streamlined, electronic age in which we live, for better or for worse.

We were at the mall on a Monday, which was traditionally a slow day at Eastland Mall, especially in the warmer months. Initially, traffic was sparse, but while we were there, the crowds got noticeably larger, which was reassuring to my nostalgic heart.

At one point, I was sitting with my mom, waiting for my brother and niece to return from their explorations, watching people walk by. (Yes, I have officially turned into my dad). I noted several groups of young teenagers, who looked like babies to my middle-aged eyes. For a moment, I thought of how they are accumulating memories similar to mine from when I was their age 40 years ago. Will they look back 40 years from now on these days with the fondness I and many others have for those days? That remains to be seen.

We all have had moments that seem to come to us from outside of time, and I experienced one in that mall in Cincinnati that day.

As I sat in my chair, I saw a young woman, probably in her 20s, walking by alone. She was dressed in a blouse and a long skirt, her long brown hair pulled back against her dark skin. While she walked, she was reading something on her phone, and then – that moment outside of time – she put her hand to her heart and smiled.

There was so much going on for me in seeing her simple gesture, and I really cannot articulate it adequately. All I can say is it spoke to my soul, reminding me of the simple truth that I have tried (sometimes unsuccessfully) to live throughout my life.

Our individual heart spaces are one in a network of billions of heart spaces, each one connected to the other in ways we cannot comprehend. Through that electronic device in that young woman’s hand, someone’s words – and, by extension, their heart – connected directly to her heart, and she felt it through her whole being, enough to physically express it, perhaps unconsciously.

And I witnessed it and felt moved by it, so the connection that was made with her also connected to me. And now I am writing about it, so each of you is being further touched by that original connection. And who knows how far back that connection originated, and how far it will travel?

In an age of so much noise, distraction and confusion, may this encounter I had with an anonymous young lady walking past me in an Ohio mall underscore the importance – indeed, necessity – of living a heart-centric life.

And may we all learn to go about our days a little more consciously, never knowing when or where that spark in our heart will be ignited.

SPIRIT MATTERS is a weekly column by Jerrilyn Zavada Novak that examines experiences common to the human spirit. Contact her at jzblue33@yahoo.com.