I want to write something normal, not something heady, insightful, or politically informed. I don’t want it to be about illness, depression, guns, or require a bunch of research. I have discovered some contentment has slipped in unbeknownst to me during the last couple of decades of life.
In the next week my husband and I will have been married 25 years. Wow. Never thought I would marry, have a kid, be a Girl Scout leader, or teach Sunday School. Life unfolds in unexpected ways.
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Public Smiles
I need to write simple stories about shopping for dinner in Trader Joes with Hubby and asking him to get pre-pared green peas because I still do not like to snap the ends off after entire summers spent shelling peas and snapping beans as a kid. I want to write about the woman with the beautiful white hair who was also choosing vegetables as we were, who broke out in a grin when she heard me say that. She had shelled a fair number of peas from pods in her lifetime. It is nice to make someone smile.
Kisses That Make It Better
I want to write about how happy it made me when my daughter Face-timed me the other day to ask me about a bad cut she’d just sliced into her finger. We discussed stitches, cleaning, wrapping, and other things when I leaned over kissed her finger on the screen and told her it would be all okay. She laughed and said that was exactly what she needed. She is 24 and lives 1500 miles away, but sometimes she still needs Mom to kiss it and make it better.
The Scent of a Memory
I found peonies in the flower section of a grocery a few days ago. It was wonderful. I do not see peonies, lilacs or any of the flowers of my childhood in Arizona, period. Every time I walked by them, I stuck my face into the bouquet and breathed in the silky sweet scent of my grandmother’s garden.
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I cannot wait to do a non-break-neck-edly paced road trip with the Hubby this summer to see sights and wonders neither of us has managed to visit in our multiple scores of years on the planet, and visit our kids and grandkids and finally make it to Niagara Falls. It is good to get out of Arizona in the summer for a while, if you can. This year we can.
Tonight as I write this, I’m enjoying the golden glow of this Honey Moon before the Solstice – and that is enough to fill me with a calm peace.
Sometimes we just need to stop and enjoy the little bits of regular days in a regular old life.
Nancy, thank you, you made me smile this morning. I am so happy that a bunch of peonies can dredge up warm memories and your daughter needed you to kiss her finger. When all is said and done, what else is there? Happy anniversary to you and Robin!!! Have please a wondrously relaxed and magical summer. Hugs
Gerry, I am so glad I could bring a smile to you my friend. I hope the whole day is filled with them!
This was beautiful. I love the imagery of the peas…though I like the ritual of snapping off the ends!
Julie, my friend Carrie Newcomer sings about the depth of peace found in little daily tasks. Glad we have found each other through Chloe.
“Sometimes we just need to stop and enjoy the little bits of regular days in a regular old life.”
Life gets crazy and we forget that the truth in that quote there ^^^. Regular days are what makes life sp spectacular. NEVER let it get boring! Enjoy your summer.
And congrats! The hubby and I celebrated our 25 this past Feb and will travel to Canada in September as a way of observation!
Glad to find you can relate! And congrats to you too, in this day and age 25 is down-right astounding.
Oh, yes. The peas. I remember the “snapping” tasks. And I love it when a whiff of something takes me back to an almost forgotten memory. For me, it’s Easter lilies, because the lily-like trilliums grew in the woods behind our house and we would always pick them to give to Mama when spring arrived. Happy summer travels!
Oh yes, I grew up at the edge of a wildflower wood, a temperate swampy goddess grove, where trilliums, morel, and endangered flowers grew. You must be a midwestern girl. If so you might like the images of a nature preserve next to where I grew up — link is just to a post I found on the place. I don’t know the author. http://unearthingmycreativeidentity.blogspot.com/2012/06/dygert-nature-preserve-whitley-county.html?showComment=1402686758101#c434157240036196294
Nancy, Actually I grew up in a small logging town in the Pacific Northwest, on the edge of the Olympic Rain Forest. Very soggy and mossy and full of old growth trees. But, yes, lots of trilliums.
Temperate rain forest, temperate swamp; they are actually very similar in many respects.
ah, the joy of the regular day! thanks for the reminder (also, I love facetime with my daughter who also lives far away).
I loved the easy, laid back feel of this post that, honestly, I haven’t felt since I was a child. I think that’s what summer is all about. Becoming more mindful of the feel of a summer breeze, the sound of crickets, and the smell of my short-lived peonies that were taken down because of the (stupid) rain!
Life is made up of moments, and we need to stop the treadmill enough to enjoy it. Thanks for that marvelous reminder, Nancy.
Thanks Cathy! I’m glad you pointed out to me that my style matched the content. I had not thought about that. See what we notice when we slow down a bit.
Beautiful, Nancy. Great way to end the week. I, too, am exhausted by feeling a need to rant about so many serious issues. This is a perfect reminder to acknowledge and appreciate the little things that are so important. Thank you.
Exactly Lois. I still have to remind myself that to do my best advocacy work that I have to step back and recharge, regularly.
Thank you, Nancy, for helping me pause and enjoy the easy, the simple, and fragrance of fresh peas and peonies. It’s always so easy to jump on life’s highway and forget there is always an exit we can take and leave the break-neck pace behind, even if just for a bit. 🙂
Yes, we have the power to control our own engines, throttles, and cruise controls!
Snapping peas is a lovely memory for me. Thanks for it!
Carol
http://carolcassara.com/mediumship/
I actually remember some very good times shelling and snapping and eating fresh produce straight out of the ground, even if I did tire of the task after a few hours of prep work for preservation. I am glad you found a happy thought, that is one of the main reasons I write. 🙂
Absolutely love this, Nancy. You’ve reminded me how much I need to stop and smell some flowers from time to time. It’s times like you’ve described–the trip to Trader Joe’s, Face-timing with your kid–that make life worth living. Thanks for the reminder.
Cherish the ordinary. It is the easiest aspect of life to overlook, and what we most miss when we cannot access it. You are most welcome.
The little bits of the every day are the BEST parts! I so agree with you… on all of it!
Thanks. Noticing the little bits can make a BIG difference!