I find it absolutely amazing how much my relationship with my brother has evolved. Back in the day, he hated me. Not only did I replace him as baby of the family, I stole his birthday. We are night and day, how is it, that we not only we have come from the same loins, but that we share a zodiac sign? Somehow it works, in small doses of course, but it works.
During our last phone conversation, I mentioned how I haven’t written in a long time. He surprised me when he said that I must be dealing with writer’s block. If you knew my brother, you would have been floored as well, when not only he made that statement, but he came up with an idea for me to write about. He said, with all that’s bad in the world, why not write about what you think is good?
I pondered the idea, what do I feel is good, when so much is bad right now? The list of bad would go on for pages, hence the lack of writing in the past few weeks, but there has to be something good I can write about, right? I decided that I should be able to find 10 things I think are good in my life/world that are worthy of ending up in this blog.
I thought about cheating. I could easily list 10 people in my life that I consider “good”, my kids for starters, that’s 2, but that’s not the journey I wanted to take while writing this note to the universe. No, I needed to dig deeper than that and what I came up with may not be novel or deep, but they are recent moments, I’d like to share with you, that have made me smile and for me, that is very good.
- While watering my garden yesterday, I noted that one of the seeds I started indoors that I didn’t think would survive the transition to the outside, has not only survived, it is thriving. My eyes widened and my heart soared when I realized that I was looking at the beginnings of a type of lettuce. I guess technically, I have microgreens! How cool is that!? I have something growing in my backyard, that I started from a seed that I could eat for nourishment. I love to be able to cultivate life, gardening feeds my soul and will eventually, feed my tummy as well.
- While driving to work today, it was warm enough to have my window rolled down. I’ve always enjoyed driving with the windows open with my hair blowing in the wind. There’s something about the experience that makes me feel free and alive. I remember the road trips we took as a family and how my dad used to put a pocket comb in his hair to keep it from going in his eyes. Maybe it was that memory or maybe it was the music that was playing that made me feel young and adventurous as I began my day. I thought about the dance clubs I used to go to and how wonderful it was to be out on the dance floor, even if I was dancing with myself, it was exciting and it made me feel “cool”. For the record, I know that I am not “cool”, but for a moment, under the strobe lights, wearing my dance boots, that I still proudly own, believing that I had some seriously impressive dance moves, I was indeed, “cool”.
- I got to work with my favorite senior citizen today. Since she has gone to part time, I don’t see her nearly enough and I truly miss our “bitch” sessions. Everyone thinks that she is a sweet little old lady, but I know better. Best of all, she lets me cut loose and rant all I want without judgement or pause. She knows who I truly am and I do not have to weigh my words when I am speaking with her. Not only does she possess priceless work ethics, she used to be a librarian and has a voice that soothes some of the savage beasts we deal with. I hand off customer calls to her when I don’t feel like dealing with explaining why I cannot get a particular item. Her, “Oh sweetie” rhetoric soothes their disappointment and I greatly appreciate her taking that chore off my plate. I told her about how my brother gave me this idea to write about. As we ended our morning chat, I felt the need to inform her that she was one of my 10 things.
- I have chimes in my backyard that hang year-round. Their melody regularly enchants me and I like to believe that somehow, their music is my mother’s voice reaching out to me from wherever she is. I recently rehung the chimes my son gave me. Their tune is different and they don’t sing as often as the other ones. I haven’t firmly decided what their meaning is yet, but along with the sound of my fountain seeping through my opened office window on this cool evening, I know the message is special, just not clear to me.
- I woke up feeling rather sexy this morning. I put on a shabby chic top and noted that I was having a good hair day, genuinely something worthy of being on my 10 things list. However, I believe that the self confidence I was feeling translated into my customer service skills. I was especially proud when a customer told me that she was there hoping to see me. Her friend had told her that she had found me and shared the news. You see, her friend had been a customer of mine at my previous place of employment. When our paths crossed a couple of weeks ago, she thrilled me with her tale about how she would seek me out because she felt like I was the only one there who knew what I was talking about. “You had a name tag with Groovy on it, right?” she asked. It’s nice to be recognized for being helpful.
- I have discovered ready-to-cook meats at Trader Joe’s. They are making my arduous work schedule more bearable. Knowing that I have a tasty option, I can prepare in a short amount of time, waiting for me, makes me happy. It’s good to eat well. I’m going to go out on a limb here, but I love food! My life has become a monotonous turnstile of eat, sleep, repeat and having something I can prepare fresh, makes me feel a little more human. Of course, while at the store, I need to focus on purchasing all that I will need to create something fabulous, I don’t want to just eat a plate of cooked meat, I mean I could, but, no. That’s part of the thrill, planning the work and working the plan and having it all come together so I can have a stress-free moment when I arrive home. That is very important to me and deserves to be on my list.
- Ear plugs. I am blessed to have a comfortable home to live in. However, I do not have central air. The sudden onslaught of heightened temperatures and humidity was very hard on me. I’m a delicate flower and wilt with ease whenever the temperatures surpass 80. I do have portable AC units, that I am grateful to have in my possession, but the noise is maddening. Even though I sleep with the white noise of a fan every single night, the amplified hum of the AC unit is too much. What really throws me for a loop is when the condenser kicks off and on, I find it jarring, to say the least. Ear plugs allow me to enjoy the comfort of the cool air, while deafening the torturous grind.
- Earrings. Unlike any other piece of jewelry, they will never betray you. No matter what you weigh, they will always fit. You cannot say that about a bracelet, ring or necklace. Respect your earrings. Enough said.
- A good cocktail, especially a dirty martini with blue cheese stuffed olives, extra olives please, is like mother’s milk to me. I’m not talking about drinking to numb the pain, no. What I’m talking about is having an experience that allows you to relax, enjoy and savor a moment. That’s what a good cocktail can do, nothing ready-to-drink, not a wine cooler (do those still exist?), something a little more complex, but not stressful to create. Elegant, yet a little bit naughty. Definitely 1 of my 10 things.
- The ability to express myself via the English language. Whether through conversation or the written word, I feel amazing when I communicate. There have been plenty of times I wish I had the ability to have everything I say and think recorded because too many times, I feel like I’ve hit on something brilliant and when I go back and try to recreate it, it’s gone. I have a strong desire to be heard, not certain why that is, but I do. Thankfully, I am a strong typist and I have a decent command of what I want to say. I fully realize that I need to be careful, but it feels so good to voice my thoughts and desires. I sincerely hope I never lose that gift.
Well, I think my brother had a good idea. I’m not certain that its content will be of any value to anyone besides myself, but it felt good to sit down and write my little note to the universe. Just like “Spinal Tap”, you know that there has to be an 11. Yes, my kids, my family and friends who are family to me. All the souls that have traveled in and out of my life, no matter how they have treated me, how I responded to them, has allowed me to become the person I am today. There’s a lot of bad in the world, but because of these souls, who have touched my life, I am truly blessed to continually see the good. No matter how small, it’s there, I just have to remind myself to look for it. Fortunately, there’s always an “11” in my life, that loves me enough, to point that out.
#thelieswechoosetolivewith
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