A while back, I posted about things that were cozy – all the things from fires to sharpened pencils to clouds and tea. Cozy things are what I most enjoy about life. But summer is in full swing now, and there is so much light! Summer is airy and big and yellow. It makes me think about things that are like bits of sunshine, grains of happiness in the everyday. They rev the engine, spark a little happy, and bring on the smiles.
Take these, for example. I like the tired that comes after being outside for too long- that is happy. Ladybugs and monarch butterflies are happy. I like to lay on my back and look up at the sky. Watching big fluffy clouds pass by is happy. Lemonade in mason jars is happy, and so is watermelon juice running down chins. The zzzz sound of bug lamps is happy, as well as steel drums. Fireflies and watching dads flop into pools is happy. The thrill of staying outside past bedtime is happy. Happy is a car down a gravel road with a trailer hitched to the back that carries a kayak or a paddle board. License plates from different states are happy. Baseball field lights are happy, as is a pile of scooters or bikes on a lawn. Peach crisp is deliciously happy. Reading on the porch is happy, and so are rocking chairs. The trill of an ice cream truck is happy, and so are jeeps without doors. Pinatas and oars are sunshine to me, and nothing makes me more happy than a dimply baby leg.
Lately, my bits of sunshine include turning the alarm off, having coffee on the deck, cantaloupe, watching my kids giggle in the slip n’ slide, going for 8:00 evening walks with Jason, watering the garden, and seeing my freckles darken.
Jason loves smiling clocks with hands at 10 and 2, watching zip-liners, and eating ice cream. Holding hands, fruit on vines, and a dog’s tail are happy. A smile after braces is happy, too.
Jameson says blue, yellow, and green are happy. Family faces are happy, and so are inflated pools.
Harper’s happy is a beach and the color teal. Horses are her happy, too.
Here are some bits of sunshine for you today.
