At the parting of the Red Sea, when the mixed multitude of people who fled Egypt was able to make their way to safety through the narrow gap in the waves, even in the midst of possibly the greatest miracle of all time, there were still people who managed to complain.

Imagine the scene: The whole community is standing on the shores of the Red Sea, waiting for the waters to part but they aren’t. Pharaoh’s army is barreling down on the people, threatening to take them back to Egypt or worse. The people plead with Moses to do something, but he is frozen.

Suddenly, Nachshon, son of Aminadav, wades into the waters and starts to walk towards the other side.

Still the waters have not parted.

Soon the water is up to Nachshon’s nose, and the people implore Moses to do something — anything! In fear, Moses raises his staff causing the waters to part dramatically, making a pathway for the people.

As they rush through the waters, Miriam and the women lead the way singing and dancing the people through, helping to calm them. They see the beauty of the creatures of the sea surrounding them, and the awesome power of the waves, behind which is the power of the One.

Putting ourselves in this moment — a moment of cinematic wonder and rescue — it seems impossible that one could not notice the beauty and power of what is all around them. But according to our tradition, that is precisely what happened for some. A midrash, which is an ancient rabbinic story, recounts what transpired: 

There were two Israelites, Ruven and Shimon. At the crossing of the Red Sea, the bottom of the sea floor, having moments ago been covered with water, was still mud.

Reuven stepped into the mud and said, “What is this muck?”

Shimon scoffed, “There’s mud everywhere and on me!”

Reuven replied, “This is just like the mud pits in Egypt where we were enslaved!”

“What’s the difference?” complained Simon, “Muck here, muck there. It’s all the same.”

(Shemot Rabbah 24:1, as retold by Lawrence Kushner, in Eyes Remade for Wonder)

This remarkable story shows the power of our ability as human beings to get stuck on autopilot. As we move through our days and our lives, we can get stuck in only noticing the muck, so much so that we start to see it everywhere. Or we are so on our own one track mind, that we move too quickly and we miss what is happening around us.

I don’t mean to say that everything is perfect, or that there aren’t periods of our lives when we walk through literal and metaphorical muck. If we pay close attention, though, we can observe the many small miracles and blessings happening simultaneously within and around us.

Sometimes, that ability to shift perspective, can shake us out of autopilot, and into the present moment. When we look closely, we can notice blessings all around us and hopefully experience a sense of gratitude.