So now I watch for them, my little unexpected moments of joy where my face hurts from so much smiling and the mess-free glitter flies around me. I no longer take them for granted. The ordinary moment that is filled with joyful power no longer gets left as ordinary, but I capture it in my mind for rainy day remembering.
Lately, I have found myself frequently getting bogged down in a frustrating pattern of struggling to tackle my overwhelmingly lengthy to-do list before succumbing to mindlessly scrolling perpetually negative news updates. The mundanity was causing me to feel despondent. I realized I needed to switch gears and instead refocus on the candid moments of inspiration that continue to happen all around me.
I allowed myself to get caught up in the simple act of making plans, basking in the highly anticipated full schedule of activities and gatherings, that I almost forgot to stop making plans and start enjoying them.
Hope has brought renewed opportunities to reflect on and process the past season; to leave the lonely routines of COVID uncertainty and create new rhythms of joy and hope.
As a stay-at-home parent, some of the biggest stresses for me throughout this pandemic have been adjusting to a wide-open schedule, concurrently fulfilling multiple roles, and dealing with a perpetual avalanche of thoughts and emotions.
Thankfulness that is punctured by sadness can still have a sense of peace and gratitude woven throughout.
I can’t enjoy every single minute of the day. I can, however, enjoy moments, even small ones, throughout the day.
Appreciation, joy, kindness, laughter, praise - I hope to continue to learn important lessons from these candid moments of inspiration.
Some days I wish I could hit a “do-over” button and start the day again.
There will be more times where I’ll wish to simply “skip tomorrow,” but I can take comfort knowing that through it all, I will not be alone.
the unexpected ever afters 