The Little Things

It's the look from the leathery skinned old man with a pack on his back, it's the smile from the twenty-something year old student on the bus, it's the hug from my Daddy when no one is around and I needed to know that I am loved, it's the girl at the coffee shop just begging to be loved, it's the man that lets you on the bus before him.
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They say it's the little things in life that really matter, you can have all the big, huge, amazing, exciting things happen, but the ones that touch you the most always come in the most unexpected ways and the most unexpected times.

The horizon is grey as I look across the sea. I stretch and climb out of bed. It's another day. I walk out to the smell (finally) of freshly brewed coffee and smile as I pour my first cup of happiness. I begin my day and enjoy making jokes with my students and talking life with them- always amazed by opportunities I have when talking with them.

I walk outside and am met by a surprisingly cool breeze and overcast skies. Fall has got to be the only time of year that cloudy skies make me feel warm and fuzzy inside. I catch a hint of....fall on the breeze and smile as I think of home and my Daddy coming home from work- it's funny. The associations that we have with certain things. I walk to the bus stop and get on- no one can damper my happy mood as I listen to my ever so exciting play lists. Another exhilarating trip to the import store. I walk in and my head turns to the left. There it is. Florida's Natural Orange Juice! Sigh. The little things in life like a taste of home grown orange juice. Price tags don't matter in those moments, you just grab, pay and find a cup as fast as you can so you can guzzle the precious gold colored liquid.

 I get home and open the windows. A pleasant breeze fills the apartment.  I drink my orange gold and smile as I think back on all the beautiful Octobers past spent in not-really-sunny-in-the-fall Southwest Florida. As I remember those days I think of all the things that stuck out to me. The smell of home made spaghetti sauce simmering all day in the kitchen, pumpkin candy corn in the glass jar on the shelf, windows open, Mom's piano students playing Autumn Leaves, savory home made soups, the sounds of Dad's car and he pulled up at 5p every day, and laughter as we said the most ridiculous things; basketball practice in the afternoon and soccer practice on Thursday evenings and games on a Friday evenings. None of these things were anything big or spectacular in and of themselves, but there was obviously something about each of those things that I just mentioned that etched itself into my memory.

This can be a wonderful experience for us, those wonderful little moments in life that bring us joy and encouragement. But it works the same on the flip side. All those little comments that sting you as you walk through your day, the man who glared at you as though you had no right to sit on the bench at the bus stop, the sarcastic side comment that really didn't need to be said....all these things affect you just as much as the positive little things. Whether you are hearing them or they are coming out of your mouth- someone, somewhere is going to remember them.

The fall is a time of remembering for me. So many things that remind me of all that I love. That's when you realize that it's not really all those big exciting moments that matter in life, it's the every day, little things that make you who are, that define you.

That is why it is so important it then to make sure that we are filling our lives with the meaningful. Watch what you say and what you do, you never know whose little moment you are making. Never waste a moment- you are defining yourself. Who are you creating today?