A smile starts on the lips,
A grin spreads to the eyes,
A chuckle comes from the belly;
But a good laugh bursts forth
from the soul,
Carolyn Birmingham
Simple joy is often found in those rare moments that we slow down...take a look around...and remember what matters most. It's so easy to get lost in the fast pace of life....and time soon becomes a precious commodity. Simple pleasures in life ....the scent of fresh baked bread as it fills your home...the sound of laughter over a vicious game of rummy...the way a smile lights the faces of your grandchildren as they rush at you, arms wide open....the rustle of wind in the crisp autumn leaves...pleasures soon replaced by long, stress filled work days, fast food in a bag and falling asleep in front of a television. I was reminded today....by the man that speaks in few words..but says volumes in actions.....that life is short...and what matters most is not to be found in 12 hour work shifts that leave me barely able to walk to the car. Nor is it to be found in buying more things...or going more places...or owning more stuff. What matters most.....what gives me joy...is found in the smiles of a field full of sunflowers less than a mile from our house...and the time and opportunity to go there...and walk amongst them...and take their picture and smile back at them. What matters most is the joy to be found in the taste of a cup of coffee made in my own coffee pot, aroma filling the kitchen, sipped from a cup my Grandmother used most every day of her life. What matters most isn't being able to say I've been at work more than most over the last 3 weeks....but that I've enjoyed the sights and sounds and smells and tastes of fall that are beginning to surround me. Unfortunately, I live in a world that revolves around money...and I do enjoy the simple necessities that require it! I know I can't quit my job..today..or tomorrow...or maybe even for the next 9 years! But the lessons to be learned in that glorious field of smiling sunflowers is one that I hope stays deep in my soul.....a lesson that shouted in yellows and greens and blues and said...slow down...remember....what matters most!
2 comments:
How very very right you are about what matters most. Thanks for sharing. I would love to walk with you through those sun flower field. I have always thought that sunflowers are the very sight of "happiness". At one time on Highway 100 after you crossed the Harpeth River Bridge coming home to the right was a field of happiness. Sunflowers and it always made me smile and sigh a sigh of hope but the new owners of the property do not plant them anymore. Peace
Great picture!! and to think that they not only bring a smile but sunflower seeds!!!
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