Grace Notes

It’s often the little things that give me a quick and transient jolt of happiness. I have accumulated a list over time. I have to believe everyone does this. How else could they muddle through the difficult days? It makes life so much more fun...like a novel you just can’t put down.

When I go grocery shopping and the total of my bill is a perfect round number. Yesterday, it came to $79.00. I asked the cashier if she watches out for these special gems.

“Yes,” she said. “One day I had three!”

When I catch someone CHANGING the letters on large, outdoor signs for movies and coming attractions. It seems that most of the time, the actual act of change takes place at some (and mysterious) other point in time. Witnessing the person responsible for changing the signs standing below with a long pole -- that’s pretty cool.

When a friend’s birthday happens to coincide with mine (that would be you, Nan) and a parent sharing a birthday with his child (Ken Jr. and Ken Sr.). I know the statistical likelihood does not make this event that rare, but it is still worthy of just a pause to reflect upon the ordered nature of the universe.

When I get on the scale and my weight is the EXACTLY the same as last time.

When a recipe I am making calls for two eggs, and I used all but two eggs earlier in the day.

When I receive a card from a friend who has been on my mind.

When I see a daisy blossoming out of a pile of rubble next to a burnt-out building.

When I pick up the phone to call a friend, and, before I dial, I hear her voice.

When I extend my forefinger toward one of my children and they touch mine with their’s and we say, “Shot of love.” A sizzle, a glow, a moment of connection.

When I watch a house wren feed its chicks through a glass window not 12” from the nest. I get to see a miracle unfolding.

When an autumn leaf floats down and lands, then settles on my head.

When I am present to witness the cracking of ice on a large, frozen pond. That crrrracccking sensation is both terrifying and exhilarating -- bringing with it an adrenalin rush of panic and excitement.

When I look at a clock and it reads 9:58. The month and year in which I was born.

These are some of the joys, large and small, that do not go unnoticed in my life.
I am ever-ready to find these punctuations in the middle of any given day. They cause me to pause, take note, rejoice. These are the grace notes that are there for the taking.