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 from the past week which brought untold joy into my life. It's the small things in life which truly mean the most. Simple abundance . . . it's the best.  

 

In Norway there's a folk tale explainiing why the dog has a wet nose. It is said that during the voyage of the Ark (Noah and all that), the vessel sprang a leak, and the dog, whom had become a good friend to Noah during the first couple of weeks of the voyage, obligingly put his nose into the gap between the planks. It was the perfect fit and everyone reached the journey's end in complete and total safety! Since then the dog has had a wet nose. Oh, I do love a wet nose to kiss and snuffle, don't you? Grateful for the wet nose in my life. 

 

A small trouble is like a pebble. Hold it too close to your eye, and it fills the whole world and puts everything out of focus. Hold it at a proper distance, and it can be examined and properly classified. Throw it at your feet, and it can be seen in it's true setting, just one more tiny bump on the pathway of life.
~Celia Luce

A useful thought to remember when life becomes challenging. I am so grateful for pebbles in my life, instead of rocks. 

 

The beautiful chapel we get to worship in each Sunday.  For a long time, and when I first moved over here to Chester, we did not have a chapel. We met in a community hall, where the night before they might have had a rabbit show, or bing, or whatever.  I am so grateful that we have this lovely chapel to meet in now, and for the wonderful members of our particular congregation. They feel like family to me, and that is a very special thing. 

  

The way that everything comes from seemingly nothing of consequence . . . like how a small dark and nondescript seed when nurtured and cared for grows to become a beautiful flower . . . or how a small glob of goo in a pond becomes a tadpole and then a frog.   Little speckled eggs, which are beautiful in their own right . . . are holding what will become baby birds . . . I cannot understand how anyone seeing the miracle that is creation, and which happens so very frequently cannot understand or believe in  the God who makes it all happen, but we are all different.  That is one of the beauties of being a human being.  Our uniqueness. 

 

Colours and shapes and sizes and smells and all of the amazing little bits that make up life in general.   And how very different it is for each of us and yet at the same time so very much the same.  I love chips in cups that show me they are loved . . . and tins with worn paint, which tell me the same thing . . . and faces filled with wrinkles that smile and show me that this person is a person who has lived and isn't afraid to show it. 

  

“The alchemist was dazed and dumbfounded, as the true meaning of the magic was revealed: *The dead will rise from glade to glen and ancient will be young again*. The dead had, after all, risen. From dead and dry things there was growth, and new life everywhere. And the endlessly long winter had at last turned to spring. From life to death and back again to life. It was indeed the greatest magic in the world.”
~Lauren Oliver

Spring . . . it is here in all its glory!!! 

 

Being thankful makes a big difference in a person's life.   Its turns everything into a blessing or a gift and it's such a simple concept, and so easy to do.  It was Paul who admonished us to be thankful in all things in 1 Thessalonians 5:18 

“When thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God” 
~Alma 37:37

Gratitude is a life changing concept.   It changes life for the better. 

 

Clear counter-tops.   We have a very small kitchen.  It very easily gets crowded and cluttery if I am not careful.   The sight of a clear counter-top may seem like a small thing to you, but it's a big thing to me, and the sight of it makes me feel pretty wonderful.   For some odd reason however . . . this only lasts for a few hours and it begins to get cluttered again.  Sigh . . . 

 

Buttercups.  They'll soon be here.  I can feel them in the air. Tis the season of yellow and nothing brightens the heart more than a field of buttercups.   Did you play that game when you were small . . . the one where you hold a buttercup up to another person's chin and ask them "Do you like butter?"   If their chin glows yellow the answer is yes.  Of course their chin will glow with the yellow reflection of the buttercup . . . but as a child you don't know that.  We just know it's exciting to see if someone else loves butter too! 

 

Hugs.   Real hugs.  Virtual hugs.   They cost nothing, but they mean the world.   Where would we be without hugs.  One size fits all.   You can even hug yourself if there's nobody else around to hug.  I love hugs.  Mitzie hugs us with her head.   She pushes and butts it into us, and it feels pretty wonderful.   Doggie hugs are some of the best hugs ever because you know they come straight from the heart. 

 

Blooming where you are planted.  I don't know who it is that first voiced this concept, so I can't give credit where credit is due.  It may have been Mary Englebreit, but it may not have been.  Even she may have pinched it from something or someone else.   It is a simple thing however . . . blooming where you are planted.  If you wait for a better time, or better circumstances, a better place . . . it may never happen.   True joy comes from making the best with what you have, where you are now, and right now.  Tomorrow never comes.  Don't waste your todays waiting for a better tomorrow.   Be a better YOU now! 

 

Sunday nights with Queen Victoria!  Yay the new series is back on the boob tube. We love this show!  

 

This lovely young couple. It won't be long now before their baby will arrive.  I am so happy for them both. This is such a special time in their lives.  I wish the press would leave her alone.  What is it about the press that loves to build people up just so they can tear them down.  You need to have a very thick skin to be in the public eye methinks.  I am so grateful I am not famous. I do not have a very thick skin.

A thought to carry with you through today . . .


° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★
 *.˛. "You can't reach for anything new 
if your hands are still full of yesterday's junk."
~Louise Smith     •。★★ 。* 。•。★★ 。* 。 

 

Cooking in The English Kitchen today  . . .  Chicken & Lemony Rice with baby spinach and feta cheese.  Small batch, built for two and cooked in the slow cooker. 

Have a wonderful Monday.  I hope your week ahead is filled with plenty of small and wonderful things. Don't forget!  

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And I do too!