"Amazing"

One of my favorite moments of the day is when I walk down to my kitchen in the morning and as I’m running water into my pan for oatmeal, I look out into our

living room and there it is - 

this beautiful piece of  

art on my wall.  

Sigh. . . 

Who needs expensive art on their walls when you have “sun” and a “green plant”. 

There was this story about an African lady who was visited by an American journalist.  When he arrived he found her sitting in front of her home (a piece of metal leaning against a dirt wall).  After introducing himself, he sat down beside her and immediately noticed the “joy” on her face.  He took a moment to take in his surroundings, looked back at her, and the only obvious question in his mind to ask was, I sense “peace” in your spirit and I see “joy” on your face, and in complete bewilderment asks, “where does that come from?”  She looked at him, probably equally bewildered and said, “Look at those beautiful, colorful flowers in the field across the road.  I get to look at them  

everyday. . . 

I reopened my blog a few months ago and in the section “About Me” I used the word

“Amazing” describing my life.  That word keeps showing up in my mind and I began

wondering, does that sound pretentious?  So, for several weeks I have been thinking

about changing or taking that word out of my blog.  And then this morning I sat down

at my computer and the story of the African woman started replaying itself in my mind.

Remember?  The one with the tin house.  I started thinking about how life can be called amazing for all of us.  Remember the boy “Matty” who appeared on Oprah’s show so many times, sharing his short, joy-filled life and all that he had learned, with the world.   It’s all about what we focus on.   

My life is amazing because I can wake up and dress myself every morning,  I can come into my office and write all day long if I want to (my passion), I have grown children that do the dishes when they come home for dinner, (2 of them are boys - I know - one even fills the ice trays), when my 4 year old granddaughter came up to me recently, wrapped her arms around me and said, GaGa, I will love you forever,  

Double Sigh. . . 

When we’re in the middle of a rain storm and she opens the den window and says, GaGa, come and smell the rain with me, (one of the first places we took her as a baby was to the beach.  After all, she was born in the spring.  Perfect timing for what we love to do most.  Go to the beach.  She and I sat on a log.  Well, she kind of sat, propped by her GaGa.  I took her shoes off and then mine, picked her up, set her toes in the sand and whispered in her ear, Niya Lilly, do you feel the sand in your toes?  I would have to say all of the above are about the closest thing to heaven), 

another double sigh. . . 

spotting a double rainbow while driving around the lake after a rain,

or. . . 

As I’m ready to crawl into bed and my hubby says, “Come look out the back window,  the moon is so big and bright it’s lighting up the whole sky”. 

Like I always say. . . 

It’s the little things. . . 

AND today as I sit writing this story there is a knock at my front door.  When I open it there stands a friend.  She said, “I can’t stay, I just wanted to give you this” as she hands me a gift all wrapped up, with even a bow + a card.  

Amazing. . . 

See. . . Just when you least expect it, an amazing moment shows up. 

And of course, if you’ve read my blog, you know  

I love all things chocolate!   

That in itself is amazing!! 

For me, I find it’s where I focus my eyes and thoughts that I find my joy.   Remember the lady in Africa whose home was a piece of tin.  She found her joy in the flowers on the other side of the road.  

So...

Just maybe. . . 

She didn’t notice that she lived in a one room house with a tin roof and one dirt wall. 

And now, I’m OK with the word, 

AMAZING. . .