This was not one of my best days but there has been so much to be grateful. Someone has said:” Don’t sweat the small stuff”. And today was made up of small stuff.
My temporary cap fell out taking with it a bit of tooth. I returned to work only to find that we had food without a tablecloth. So I rushed to the shops there I dithered between, uncertain which line to join. Unfortunately, I miscalculated for the shopper ahead of me had two trolleys and a file of coupons. I could not believe my eyes. I darted to the other counter but it was laden with groceries ad as she was out of ns of cans remained in her basket. The minutes ticked by into lateness. Space doze. I prayed for grace as I asked to have another till open because I did not want to appear rude. I ran out of the store clutching the tablecloth. When I was almost there, someone asked me to get him or her some eggs thinking
I spent two hours working on a presentation and just as I was about to send it to the printers, I lost it. Unfortunately, I had to see the dentist so I asked another colleague to re-type it. She gave me the good news just before the dentist opened my mouth. She had found it! The dentist was also able to repair my tooth ready for capping.
Rushing back to the office my email did not work. Several attempts to get the footnote with acknowledgements on one page failed but eventually, I got all 44 copies and went to the meeting in the middle of the tiebreaker. Then heard the news. Presentation due next time. All small stuff that frustrate and irritate.
The high spots: the incredible work the dentist did, a frank discussion with my brother and a spirit of thankfulness that there could have been more difficult irritations. Instead of small stuff, there could have been big stuff like a child being hurt, a father losing his job. Even with irritations, gratitude and joy permeate the day.
Friday was bathed in sunshine without the sticky heat. Any islander would have enjoyed the weather. Although high winds threatened a storm, the raindrops peeped out timorously before withdrawing into the clouds. I bought a beautiful table for work and enough coffee and tea for five hundred cups. It has been an exhaustingly good week. My youngest brother sits beside me. Any moment now, my niece and her friend will turn from dinner and fill me in on their lives in the Carolinas. We are content.
In spite of my apprehensions at the dentist, my tooth no longer nags me with a continuous ache. I thanked the dentist.
I have important work unfinished but I did some important things. Cela vie!
Tomorrow has its own demands that require an early start. No lie -in this week.
Yet, I’m so very thankful for God’s grace expressed in safety while going in the parking bay, giving us patient assistants to help us put the tab l and e in my car, placing pleasant clinicians across our path. Kindness is empowering and this week I have been touched by many fingers, Most of my contacts took little time but that pause to say”hi” broke the routine and set up a chain reaction of good-will.
Kindness often costs so little but when freely given, sweetens our lives richer and makes it smoother.
My brother remarked that “Today, was a good day, sis” more than once so I began to pay attention. We both cooked breakfast for our niece, her friend and another brother. We tried to. I don’t like eggs, particularly scrambled so was a bit thrown when they requested it. I whipped the eggs, added too much milk or so my niece told me when I asked her opinion. The grits were better although like scrambled eggs, it was the first time I was serving it.
My niece and her friend refused the beans and tea, She also passed on the grits but everyone ate bacon and eggs. The banter was excellent.
As in millions of homes, meal times aren’t only about the food. They are about caring, sharing and just being together. So breakfast was a success.
My youngest brother and I left the dishes unwashed and rushed to the library. He joined the library and I obtained a duplicate card. He spent an hour in the computer lab and I passed the time alone in the Books for sale section. I could not buy all the books but among the six I selected were the works by Agatha Christie’s Poirot and A Sense of History –the best Writing from the pages of AMERICAN HERITAGE, Mindful of my lack of an American education, I try to immerse my self in its literature whenever possible.
Leaving the library, I visited a carpet shop to find a rug. As my brother looked around, I checked my email and found that although I did not win a conference ticket, Proverbs 31 will publish my article. We completed our excursion by taking the scenic river route to check on some furniture shops. In the end, we found what we wanted nearer home.
We bought some extra fruit and toilet paper before returning home. So, what made the day good? Good days are often made of ordinary things: Cooking, reading, and shopping
Piecing together the little things, a tapestry of caring, commitment and cheerfulness emerges. It is better than a good day when love is shared and accepted.
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