It's to the simple Things

Dear America,

"Though it may feel otherwise, 

enjoying life is no more dangerous 

than apprehending it 

with continuous anxiety 

and gloom." 

 #286, Alain De Botton, writer, 

from a little book of inspiration,

  "Nothing is worth more than this day" 

by Kathryn and Ross Petras

so just to be clear, there are a lot of winners in today's pandemic climate...

Number one on that list might just be the dogs.

In our neck of the woods, it was common, in the middle of the day especially, to see dog walkers taking the household fur-man out for their midday stroll.  

It was just okay.  

It was just the best a dog could get some days.  

For the very lucky dogs, the mama of the household carried out the task, crossing that off her list in short order before moving on to the next thing.

NOW -- not only is the dog walker taking a leave of absence, the mama is joined by her other half, and kids, if they have any.  And the dogs, oh they are looking so deliriously happy.

Prediction, when the worst of this season has passed, the dogs of this world will need a round of pet therapy to cope with the return to the way we were...

Take Out is a winner, too.

If you have that In N Out urge, there is a drive thru open to satisfy it -- and in So Cal, it's available until about 1 am!  IKR

After the last couple of weeks staying close to home, that spin through the drive thru made me feel human again.  Not to mention, there is just nothing like In N Out; and I will gladly debate that topic until the cows come home.

That cheeseburger with grilled onions -- what a gastronomical sensation.   Yes, many swear by the Double Double, but the simplicity of a single layer of the perfect cheese to meat ratio, wrapped up with that greasy smear of onions, lathered in thousand island, and nestled between two toasted buns and accompanied with a healthy helping of cold, crispy lettuce and tomato is where its at, baby.  

Ah, I ate it so fast.  Too fast.  

I just might have to circle round again today. 

What else?

Guessing Nestle's Toll House Morsels are up there on the winners list.   Everybody is home and who doesn't love a freshly baked batch of chocolate chip cookies?  

Might just add that it's not just baking that's up -- but that grilling, roasting, broiling, boiling, frying, sauteing, flambeing, and chillin'  are all at an all time high.  Bon Appetit must be so proud of all of us right about now, and the nation of foodies they we have become.  

With many a cheap meat in my fridge, honing in on the foods to feed an army for at least a month -- I have already done my share of  recipe searches for the proper way to cook a London Broil, as well as, hundreds of ways to cook the tried and true pork butt.  The boys in the house favor to call it a pig's butt, but I think of that as being rather crude; with that kind of talk, might as well go all the way and call him Wilbur while you're at it.

Of course, in just the first few days of panic, our local Vons was cleaned out of every meat known to man, from the little piggy's to the wagyu beef.  Talk about shock.  

The butcher is restocking, but slowly.  The store is asking patrons to only shop for a week's time, to allow for the whole community to find something to eat.  I think people are abiding, unlike that order from our governor to Shelter in Place.........

seems Californians all had the same idea in mind over this past weekend -- to hit the beach.

Well, it was glorious outside. there is that.

And yes, I'll admit I spent two days in a row either laying still on a beach towel soaking up the sun or walking along the water's edge.  It was the first couple of days of sunshine and warmth in quite some time.    And besides, it's not like we all lined up next to each other and passed around the sunscreen..lots of space separated everybody.  Matter of fact, if you encroached on the recommended six feet of social distancing between, that friendly smile across from you faded into a piercing stink eye in a heartbeat, even if you're kids went to the same school.

So dogs are winners.

Nestle's Chocolate Morsels, winners.

In N Out, along with all the other fabulous take out in the world...

and the beaches of California....

Winning.

Oh and there is one more thing --  and really, this is where I should have started.

God.

God is winning. 

Prayer is probably at an all-time high for this day and age.

God working through human nature is winning -- building upon the principles and values that unite, console, heal and help, in order to bring us through to the other side of this pandemic is connecting the world of communities and families in demonstrative and amazing ways.

Just maybe, we might be finding ways to change for the better when all of this is said and done.

Can we get by with less?

Can we find happiness in the simple pleasures?

And although this may sound extreme, but just maybe we home school every child until the age of eighteen?  It couldn't hurt.

Life, itself, is creative.  And nothing is impossible with God.

A go to a phrase that has nearly become cliche these days, 'we're all in this together' -- delivers a nugget of absolute truth.  We are all in this together.  And what has become also crystal clear, is just how connected we are, altogether.  Our lives, our lifestyles, have been built in and upon a highly social structure; from restaurants and bars, to fitness clubs and sports, to congregating at church. our arena of choice in most every culture, and especially here in America, is one of being together, through thick and thin,

How delicate and elaborate an economic ecosystem we have among our diverse and unique collective of people, of enterprise, from the small business (99% of all business) to corporations; it's like a Jenga tower of Babel in backgrounds, biography, and breed. and each relying upon the other to continue to participate. The laws of circulation, the laws of attraction, the laws of abundance, are continuously, and magnificently, and intimately connected all the live long day.  We feel it, even when a fraction of us falls down.  

And even though I may be rambling here at the end of this day, it's a good ramble.  The thoughts in my head are overflowing with possibilities, choices now endless, as every day carries with it the opportunity to improve upon the day before, large or small, for each day is precious.

In the last two days, squeezed in the hours leftover after sunbathing and beach walks, I have shredded every unnecessary piece of documentation that I have hoarded in my office for the last two years; and I have disposed of the lemon tree --  clearly showing signs of being on its last limb --  after thirteen years of faithful production.  Of course, it leaves this planet along with a grateful heart of every tart, roasted chicken, and batch of lemonade that came with it, and then some.  

It's roots were so root bound, it made me sad.  I had no idea that this poor dwarf of a lemon tree was basically surviving through a respirator, by the looks of it.  Timely ironic.

And what a relief it was to take it out of its misery.  It was time.

New beginnings are welcome here.

Out with the old, in with the new.  Dust out the cobwebs, including the lovely Charlotte, and free the energies for something greater, if only for a healthier, more sanitized, sparkling new attitude.

To everything, there truly is a season.

Even as I sit here gazing out the window to the deck, assessing the lemon tree void, it feels okay.

And sometimes just okay, is okay. 

really.

Make it a Good Day, G