When it shines, it shines so bright

On the surface my weekend had all the elements of a typical weekend for a family of four—sports, errands, a birthday party for my daughter’s playmate, a bit of cleaning, a DVD to watch on Saturday night, a trip to the library, sleeping late, shopping, church.

I spent Saturday morning watching my daughter play softball and the afternoon designing and creating cards with some new stamping supplies I got a while back. Saturday night E and I watched Shop Girl, a Steve Martin movie based on his novella with the same name. Adored the book, loved the movie.

Sunday morning the first thing I saw was my son’s blond head peeking around the bedroom door to see if I was awake. A second later, his sister peered around the corner too. They made me breakfast, cards, drawings, and bought me a small present. After church and shopping, E made me dinner and the kids hosted a “party” complete with table decorations, games, and goody bags. They planned the whole thing themselves. We played bingo until we sent them up to bed. It was a perfect weekend—ordinary yet extraordinary for me.

There have been times when I’ve felt like I was a spectator in my own life, not fully engaged or appreciative, unable to really give of myself and share in family life. Depression can flatten me emotionally and physically, but the silver lining in those passing gray clouds is that when depression retreats, I truly savor ordinary happiness, relish each moment with the people I love, laugh often and loudly, and offer the world a broad and heartfelt smile. Joy bubbles up unexpectedly in the midst of my mundane days.

In recent months, I’ve felt wonderful—fully present in the moment, able to express what I’m feeling, appreciate what I’ve received, and reach out to others. It reminds me of a beautiful tasseled bookmark my friend Lynn gave me. On one side is the Chinese proverb: “One joy scatters a thousand griefs.” On the other side are the Chinese characters for happiness, harmony, tranquility, and prosperity. Ancient wisdom that holds true today.

Paul Simon said it less eloquently but with contemporary flair: “Ba, da, da, da, da, da—feelin’ groovy!”

May 15, 2006

Comments

[Ash]

Sounds like you had a fantastic day. I know what you mean about savouring ordinary happiness. I get moments when everything seems so normal and so 'alive'. It makes you realise what life is for. Glad your Mother's Day was good!

[wordgirl]

I am Oh-So-Happy to hear that you had a joyous/groovy Mother's Day. We had gorgeous weather here. Very atypical for a May in Texas.

[TB]

So happy for you. It sounds lovely and being able to appreciate it is a true gift.

[Brooke]

So happy to hear you're happy! And the whole being in the moment thing is a tough nut...kudos to you!