Daily workouts, walking the dog, and preparing healthy meals have become my priorities. Autumn joys like canning apple butter and hot salsa let me store our garden bounty while savoring the wonderful smells that fill the kitchen. Yes, it would be easier to buy stuff at the store, but I would miss the thrill of picking ripe fruit and veggies from their vines, gently cleaning their skins, blending them into mouthwatering combinations, and pouring the finished creations into awaiting steaming-hot jars.
On one of my many walks with the dog amid the grove of trees by our road, I uncovered a large, flat rock the size of my palm. I love running my fingers along its broad, smooth, stone-gray surface. With a silver paint-pen, I inscribed the message “Be Grateful” on one side and “Let it go…free your soul” on the other. It reminds me that simple pleasures are often the most memorable because they appeal to your many sensibilities. As I touch the rock and scan the message, I’m instantly transformed back to that moment in the woods amid the trees and nature.After all, the world is a vast and awe-inspiring place. We are but one seed growing a grand field…surrounded by other seeds and plants that
are living, growing, withering, and rotting into dust. At times, we become so engrossed in our own stresses and worries that we forget to look up at the surrounding fields and take comfort that we are not alone in our little ecosystem. The great cycle of life has many seasons just as our own lives are comprised of minutes, days, weeks, and years. Be grateful for the simple joy of each moment.
