October 25, 2021 ~ Monday evening (blustery, rainy, and a bit spooky)
Halloween is approaching. Until a few years ago, when I purged my stash, I had almost as many Halloween decorations as I did for Christmas. And that is saying something! I wasn’t known as the Halloween Queen for nothing! But, with just me and the dogs spiriting these halls … my decs are now more autumnal … except for the last two weeks of the month.
Then, I pull out the bare bones skeleton (he’s seen better days and is now missing a leg/hands/feet = more gruesome) and hang him outside to blow about in the wind, a few bats are stuck in planters, I turn the ceramic pumpkins around so their faces now show to the rooms … and I put batteries into my plush frogs that are nestled inside a plush cauldron, who shake and quake and sing about what will happen to them when the witch comes back. I love them. I won’t let any witch near them to make them into stew. They bring me joy.
It’s the little things.
I have a beautiful photo of a mass of Bullwhip kelp on my fridge that whenever I look at it – a smile twitches across my lips along with a slight chuckle – if not a full belly laugh. Sam took that photo and sent it to me years ago – reminding me of the time she slipped and fell on one while on the beach in Oregon and omg – getting slimed in the process with the most foul smelling liquid (kind of a combo of rotting meat, sewage and anything else horrible). It was so bad. As in SO BAD … but also hilarious. Sorry hon. That picture (not the actual incident – okay, yes, the actual incident) brings me joy, too.
The pen and ink drawing of a runner with an alligator behind him (Ted’s art) hangs in my bedroom … the dog toys strewn across the floor … the plaque hanging on the wall that reads “You are here” and the handmade clay pot holding my favorite Peperomia …
Those and so many small things bring me happiness (and glee, as well). When someone says don’t sweat the small stuff … I don’t. I cherish it … take it all in … enjoy the hell out of it and add it to my nest. And, the other part of the saying is … it’s all small stuff. I don’t know about that – but okay. I’ll bite. I’ll enjoy it all.
I have stickers on my darling little Fiat (Gus) … a llama that is so perfectly sweet looking … a stick figure T-Rex eating a stick figure family (I love that one!) … one about spreading kindness like glitter (cuz that shit gets everywhere) … that straws suck … the beautiful octopus on my gas tank cover, and one about telling your dog I say hi! I love them (and my car) … more small stuff. More joy.
I’m sitting in my living room – I’ve rearranged the furniture again. Tim used to say how happy he was that he wasn’t blind – cuz he’d go to bed and wake up to a different house. Lots of bruised shins for the unsuspecting. I’m listening to Mom Nature’s Bomb Cyclone blowing the leaves off the trees and howling through a few still open windows. I’m (once again) so glad I’m not out on a night like this … so thankful for my cozy home. I tried to take the guest poodle for a walk earlier, but it was just too windy … neither of us needed pine needles imbedded in our faces.
But, while this walk was abandoned, it brought to mind my walk from Friday evening. It was downright balmy – the calm before the storm. It was 70 degrees at 7pm – warmer than most of our summer days! It was luscious and lovely and I walked slowly down the cliff road – accumulating colorful leaves and tiny acorns, small pinecones and wormy windfall apples. My pockets bulging with treasures by the time I got home.
And on that walk, I watched an eagle soaring overhead … floating on the thermals along the cliff edge and I stopped to watch him. It was remarkable … he’d fly up over the meadow and then he’d head toward the cliff and just glide down … catch a draft and fly back over the meadow and do it again … and again … and again. And as I watched him do this over and over it made me think that it looked like he/she were sledding on an invisible snow hill … and I wondered … was this animal experiencing joy? It certainly seemed like it.
And it made me wonder – what animals play and have joy in their lives? I watched a video of an otter juggling a rock a week or so ago. They are playful creatures. Dogs, cats, birds, dolphins, chimps and apes … all play for fun or show happiness. Just knowing that that eagle was not just looking for dinner … warmed my heart.
Joy in the little things.
I am a nester and am surrounded by things that bring me joy – on a daily basis. The tin plate that holds the fat, furry, acorns from a Bur Oak gathered on a walk with my daughter last summer … photos of my kids (from some 30 years ago) … a cross-stitched pillow a (now gone) friend made for me … an ancient Underwood Noiseless typewriter that urges me on and reminds me how easy writing is on a laptop … and now, seasonally, I have bowls of leaves and berries and pumpkins here and there and a small, blobby, rubber skeleton named Buster reclining on my chaise. It’s the little things!
I’m off to give a cookies to the dogs – just mine here tonight – so, Bea and Annie will get a few extra. They bring me immeasurable joy – every day. I’ll be handing out candy in CO this year so I’ll miss putting the costumes on the dogs … I’m not sure they’re as unhappy about that as I am!
Wishing you a Happy Halloween … much seasonal and daily joy … and tell your dog I say hi!