(though Blackie Chan, a little ahead and to the right of Rosa Parks, is hidden among the leaves and brush on the roadside)
Oh, I know, there’s a lot to be worried, scared, sad and miserable about right now. Maybe, when I get to the letter M, my title will be “Misery,” and I’ll write about all of it: in my life; in this community; in Michigan; in this country; in the whole world. Maybe not. Today, I have the letter J, behind as I am in this April A~Z challenge, and I choose to focus on Joy.
My little dictionary defines joy simply as “gladness, pleasure, cause of this.” It doesn’t suggest that it only occurs in the absence of pain, grief or concern. So, I won’t be apologetic for feeling glad when good things happen, even when they happen in the middle of so much misery. I love the line from Steel Magnolias, “laughter through tears is my favorite emotion.” Here are some things that have been bringing me joy:
- My three dogs. I picked them up from the kennel last evening, after a month away. They look good! They were happy to see me, and are glad to be home. We’ve all been grinning at each other pretty steadily for the better part of the last twenty-four hours.
- Clean sheets. One of the first things I did, when I got home yesterday, was strip the bed and wash the sheets. I thought sleeping in my own bed after such a long time would be extra special if everything was fresh and warm from the dryer. I was right!
- Conversations with each of my daughters. After three weeks of being able to chat daily with them, of being able to catch their eye and smile, or give a hug whenever I wanted to, coming home caused a bit of a shock to my system. Today, I talked on the telephone with both of my girls, and it helped immensely with the withdrawal symptoms!
- After my first few days in Hawaii, I set my camera aside and took pictures only with my little tablet. From there, it was easy to post them right away. This morning, I pulled the SD card from my camera, and transferred those photos to my computer. Oh, the lovely memories!
- The big island of Hawaii has a good population of wild goats, pigs, cats and chickens. We caught glimpses of the goats when we drove through the mountains. As we walked past one resort on our way to the beach, we marveled at about fifty white cats all sunning themselves in the open courtyard. The small, shy Kona pigs could often be seen in the countryside, and three of them visited my daughter’s yard regularly. Chickens came every day: Nighthawk was the rooster that my grandson named; Dolly and Lola were the names my daughter and I gave to the two hens that kept him company. Toward the end of our visit, Dolly had quit coming into the yard with the others. She’d show up every third day, desperate for food, and rushing to eat and go. “She’s sitting on a nest,” I told my family, “she needs to get back to keep the eggs warm.” Last evening, I was happy to see a message from my granddaughter: “Dolly came back but this time with three chicks”
Plenty of joy!
cindyricksgers 