Small and Wonderful Things . . .

"The world is fairly studded and strewn with pennies cast broadside from a generous hand. But who gets excited by a mere penny?...It is dire poverty indeed when a man is so malnourished and fatigued that he won't stoop to pick up a penny. But if you cultivate a healthy poverty and simplicity, so that finding a penny will literally make your day, then, since the world is in fact planted with pennies, you have with your poverty bought a lifetime of days. It is that simple. what you see is what you get." ~Anne Dillard

A few of the small and wonderful things which bring untold joy into my life. It's the small things in life which truly mean the most. Simple abundance . . . it's the best.

 

Back in 2011, someone left some very unkind comments on my blog. Very unkind. At the time these comments caused me a great deal of pain, and I have to say that in the intervening years they have popped up in my mind and heart to cause me even more pain. They were quite vile actually.  All this time I have believed that it was a certain person who left them, due to the language used and the viciousness of them. This morning I discovered a little button on FB that allows you to go through any messages that they might have filtered away from you getting them.  I found a message of apology in there from the actual person who left those comments.  A six year old message.  A message which, if I had gotten it at the time, might have gone a long ways towards healing damage and hurt.  I am not sure what I will do with this, but I can't just sit on it. What happens next is on me.  I must do what is right. I am not sure how wonderful this is, but we will see.

If you believe this as I do . . . then I know what I have to do next.  And it involves eating crow. Lots of crow.

The helpers. I love reading about the kindnesses which have come out of dastardly situations.  They help to restore my faith in others.  With the recent terror attack on London Bridge, some really wonderful examples have been set by people who stepped forward in the face of evil to do something positive.  Examples like these:

-The Pub doormen and staff who rushed forward to lock doors to help keep their patrons safe, uhdoubtedly saving who knows how many lives.

-The Khan Family who offered free taxi service to those involved. As soon as news broke, Twitter user @thekhans_ offered up his taxi service to those stranded in London Bridge.

-The sikhs who offered offered refuge in Gurdwaras across the capital. As chaos unfolded across the capital, Phaldip Singh stepped in to help those in need. The entrepreneur and youth activist tweeted a map highlighting the location of Sikh temples which were open and providing food and shelter to those affected. 

-As news unfolded that people had been hit by a van on London Bridge, locals immediately jumped to action. Many tweeted to offer their homes up to those caught up in the attacks.

-When news broke of the attack on London Bridge, the Metropolitan Police were there within minutes. In fact, it was reveal that the attackers were shot dead within eight minutes of the attack starting. Throughout the night, they were on hand to offer the latest, up-to-date information to the public via Twitter.

-A man, named as Gerard Vowls by the Guardian, said that he was in the Ship pub near Borough Market when the attack took place. He began throwing things at the terrorists in a desperate bid to fend them off.

-The 80 brave medics who rushed to the scene to save lives.While hundreds of people fled Borough Market and the surrounding area, over 80 medics from the London Ambulance service rushed to the scene to tend to those who had been injured. These included ambulance crews, advanced paramedics, specialist response teams and an advanced trauma team from London’s Air Ambulance.

-A Borough Market restaurant owner revealed how his quick-thinking staff were able to bring 130 customers to safety as the London Bridge terror attackers came running towards his cafe. Mark Stembridge told his staff at Cafe Brood, some of whom were ex-military, to pull customers from the open balcony as they saw three men brandishing weapons coming towards the building.

-A man living in Surrey cycled 34km so he could deliver water to police working in the aftermath of the terror attack. Paul Ashworth, who lives in Esher, said he just “wanted to help”, so decided to buy water bottles from local stores and ferry them to working officers.

- In an act of defiance, Richard Angel returned to the Arabica Bar and Kitchen, in Borough Market, to settle up. “I’ll be going back to the same restaurant to finish my meal, pay my bill and give them a double tip. They cared about us and our safety,” he told the BBC. The 33-year-old added he was “not going to let these people win”. “If me having a gin and tonic with my friends, flirting with handsome men, hanging out with brilliant women is what offends these people so much, I’m going to do it more not less. That’s what makes London so great.”

And I am sure there are many, many more positive stories which will come to be known in the days to come.

The One Love Manchester Concert which saw a multitude of entertainers and over 50,000 fans bravely show a powerful display of Unity in the face of terrorism and raise a lot of money for those affected by that horrific act of terrorism in Manchester two weeks ago.  I did not get to see or hear the concert, but I understand it was phenomenal.  I love the tenacity and ability of the human race to be able to bounce back in defiance after terrible things happen.  When things get tough, the tough really do get going.

 

Yesterday was Fast and Testimony meeting at church.  The first Sacrament meeting of every month is given over to the bearing of testimonies.  I love this meeting.  I love to hear the testimonies which are borne and I love to bear my own.  The testimonies of others help to lift and inspire me. Its just a special, special meeting.  And yesterday there was a Baby Blessing as well.  I love Baby Blessings.

My mom and dad, who, even though they have been divorced for almost 30 years, never got in the way of myself and my siblings loving each of them.  That is as it should be.

Once again, my Sunday talks with my mother.  I love them and appreciate so much the blessing they are for me.  I am grateful for every word we share with each other. Each is a gift.

Mitzie and her never-ending loyalty, love and the joy which she brings daily into my life. She has personality plus.

This man God gave me and this beautiful life that we share with each other. Its the best. I just noticed that up in the left hand corner of this photograph there is a picture of the Saviour Jesus Christ and just below Him a picture of the Temple.  Two things which are a huge part of our lives.  A happy accident!

And those are my small and wonderfuls for this week.  There are countless others, but I don't want to bore you with the mundanacity of them all!  (Now THAT'S a word!)

A thought to carry with you  . . .

.° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
 *.˛.Sometimes when you are in a dark place,
you think you have been buried . . .
But, actually you have been planted. •。★★ 。* 。

Spiritual Enlightenment

In The English Kitchen today  . . .  Skillet Chicken with Peas, Leeks and Bacon. Scrumptious!

Have a beautiful week.  I hope it is filled to overflowing with small and wonderful things.

Don't forget along the way  . . .

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And I do too!