Sometimes it helps to think about what’s going right in life when it seems like the list of what’s going wrong is really, really long. So here’s my list of things helping me get through and giving me a taste of kingdom come:
Water—all forms but mainly rivers. I just read a quote from T.S. Eliot that I like: “There is something in having passed one’s childhood beside the big river [the Mississippi], which is incommunicable to those who have not.” There’s just something that anchors you when you live by a river. I can’t explain it. But it’s wonderful. I don’t live by the Mississippi these days but I make do with the “Little River” by my house.
Music. It’s always a tricky question when someone says “If given the choice, would you rather lose your sense of sight or hearing?” Sight seems so necessary to life. But when I think about how music has impacted me, I can’t imagine living without it. Life would be so hollow.
Woods. I love that muffled sound you hear when you’re deep in the woods and everything is quiet. It’s like you’re in a soundproof room and all you can hear is your own footsteps on the earth. Peace.
It’s cliché, but driving with the windows down and the music blasting is the best. There was a place in Springfield (during college) where a bunch of honeysuckle grew by the road, and you could drive past it and just drink in the smell of it all. Bliss.
Family. Mine always seems to be changing. People come and go. But the ones that stick are my lifeblood. People forced to stick with you in the hard times are the ones you truly get to rejoice with in the good times. Those good times are worth fighting for. I got to experience one just this weekend. My brother got married to a wonderful woman who I am lucky to call my sister. The road was rocky getting to that day, but it made it all the more valuable when it finally came. It was a beautiful wedding and gave me so much joy to witness.
Airplanes. Do any of us truly comprehend how amazing it is that a huge chunk of metal can hurtle through the air at 500+ mph? I can wake up on one side of the country and go to sleep on the other. If you told someone who traveled on the Oregon Trail about that they would think you were some kind of idiot.
The thought of Autumn coming. The anticipation is almost killing me. It’s my favorite season and the past couple of years I didn’t really get to spend it the way I like to. Being pregnant with all-day morning sickness is no way to spend the fall months. And being the mother of an infant doesn’t lend itself to outdoor exploration either. But this year, I’m getting outdoors in the cool weather, even if I have to strap Ivy to my back myself. Fall trees are majestic. They might be my favorite thing to see on this earth. And, lucky me, they come around every year.
And this song. Because it's just awesome.
Hanson--Penny and Me
Staring at a million city lights
But still Penny and are all alone beneath the sky
Feel the wind brushing slowly by
If I could soar I would try to take these wings and fly
Away to where the leaves turn red
But no matter where I am instead
Singing along to feeling alright
Or making it by under pink moonlight
It's always Penny and me tonight
