So I was at Walgreens yesterday and I noticed a little lady, about 80 years old, standing in front of the Easter stuffed animal section. She was pushing the button on a little pink bunny, listening to it sing a sweet song in a miniature child's voice. She stood there smiling. A little lady, about 80 years old, in a brown trench coat, her left arm clutching her handbag, bent over a small pink singing bunny. Smiling. It was one of the most precious scenes I have seen in a while. She did not just push the button once. She pushed it again and again and was still standing there when I went to checkout.
But before I reached the cash register, I walked up to her and thanked her for bringing so much joy to my day...
It's the simple things.
Last week I took three days of retreat with my dog, Sasha. We stayed at a friend's cabin by a lake in nowhere, Kansas. It was quiet, secluded, and perfect. We had no cell service and no Wifi. We slept a lot, took long walks through the prairie grasses, mucked in the lake mud, and ate granola bars (Sasha's not too fond of them but still begs for bites) in the morning sun. On one morning, Sasha woke me at 6am, whimpering to be let outside. The morning was brisky bitter cold. I waited maybe 3 minutes and jumped back into my warm bed. I lay there half asleep when I felt the nudge... the "wake up and sit outside with me... watch the sunrise with me..." The Lord's sweet whisper. The Lord "bidding" for my attention. So I went. I sat out in the tall grass, the morning sunlight on my face, and listened. I hear a woodpecker. A swallow. A dog bark. Wind through the branches.
Nothing else. All was quiet. Sasha bounding through the morning- chasing hopping bugs...
It's the simple things.
until soon,
b.
