Aug. 27, 2022

Share the Happy

A couple of weeks ago, I was walking my dog early in the morning. I do that every day, but this particular day stood out. We’d had a torrential downpour the night before and the streets had become rivers of rainwater running into the storm drains. The air the next morning was incredible. A storm like that washes away all the sins of modern society from the streets and rooftops and out of the air. It just feels like the city has been baptized into a new day.

As we were walking along, we came upon one of those storm drains that had so successfully channeled the water off the streets and right at the edge of it was a beautiful yellow Gerber daisy. It had taken root in the dirt around the grate and had somehow managed to hang on throughout the previous night’s storm. I could have easily plucked it out and carried it home to enjoy for a few days on my table. I didn’t. I stood and admired it for a few minutes, the tenacity of the little root system giving way to such a happy flower. It brought me so much joy looking at it that I found myself looking around for someone else to show it to and share the smile. But nobody was around that early. So, instead, I chose to leave it because I knew that eventually someone else would come along and see it and maybe smile, too. Even though I couldn’t personally share it, I found joy knowing that if I left it there, it could bring a smile to anyone, or everyone, that walked by that morning.

A couple of days later, Gabe and I were on our afternoon walk and came upon a couple of the neighborhood kids near the edge of the woods. One was sitting on a large rock with her head down, intently enjoying something in a paper cup. The young boy who was with her, and who lives next door to me, jumped up and showed me a similar paper cup in his hands. “We found blueberry Utopia!” he shouted. That area of the woods is filled with low-bush wild blueberries, and they were thoroughly enjoying their discovery. They could have hoarded them and not said anything to me, but they chose to share their good fortune of one of the treasures of summer in New Hampshire. Their happiness was contagious and so willingly shared. They didn’t hide them or try to pick them all themselves. Instead, they chose to enjoy their unexpected snack and share the taste of summer with others.

This past Sunday at church there was a young mom a few rows ahead of me holding the sweetest little baby boy. He had dark, wavy hair, big round eyes, and the roundest little cheeks! I was so enjoying his smile during the music and thinking back to the days of holding my own little boy during church. I turned to the pastor’s wife who was sitting behind me and pointed him out. She, too, smiled and said, “Isn’t he beautiful?” Yes, he is.

There can be so much ugliness in the world sometimes that it can wear us down. But there is also so much beauty and happiness if we choose to see it. And it is exponentially greater when we choose to share it with others. The only way to overcome darkness, is by looking for and sharing the light. Look for the beauty in everyday things, point them out to others around you and share the happy. We all need so much more of that. Be brave. Be kind.