Simple Joys

Welcome to Simple Joys on Chief 187™Chatter.

There are times in life that are trying. When reason gives way to chaos, rational thought disappears, and sanity is more fiction than reality; Simple Joys are casualties.

When I lose my way on the path of Life I’m so very grateful to know that I have people in my life who love me, refuse to judge me, and reach a hand out to me to guide me back.

I am lucky. I am blessed. And I have been able to refocus and find my Simple Joys.

And now, without further ado, is this week’s Simple Joys.

Purple tights and black ankle boots. I have never been overly fashionable preferring to express myself in other ways besides clothing. I love color but stick to black. Recently I purchased a pair of fashion-forward purple jewel-toned tights and a pair of black leather ankle boots.

My daughter usually dresses like a Princess when we go out. She always instructs me to dress like a Queen. I’m not sure how others view me, but my daughter is always so pleased with my choices to fulfill her command.

When I dressed to go to my son’s awards night for Scouts last Friday night I premiered my purple tights with an old “LBD” (little black dress) and my ankle boots. It was not my usual look but I felt sassy and fun! My daughter kept telling me, "You look so pretty, Mommy!"

Stepping outside of my norm and playing with my fashion was a most flirty and fun Simple Joy.

Scout awards. After a summer filled with activities, camp, long active days, and fun-filled active nights, the school year and scout season began simultaneously. For both my Boy Scout and Cub Scout the previous week was awards night at Scouts.

Hearing and seeing how much my boys had earned respectively made me overwhelmed with pride and so thankful for their love of Scouting. My husband always says everything cool he learned as a kid he learned in Scouting.

Knowing my boys have the same opportunities to learn lifelong skills and make lifelong friendships is a Simple Joy that gives me peace.

Rush. When movies are heavily promoted, built up before release, and given much fanfare, I become disillusioned and rarely like the finished product as much as I had hoped to originally.

Rush is the exception.

Although I am a race fan I believe this movie is excellent on many levels. The story is compelling – and true – the acting superb, and the racing sequences phenomenal.

Seeing the movie on opening weekend was a bonus but the entire process of seeing this movie, from trailers leading up to its release to the actual viewing, has been a most rewarding Simple Joy.

Patrick Dempsey: Racing Le Mans. This miniseries documentary came out a few weeks ago and my husband DVR'd it so we could watch it in its entirety at our leisure.

We were slow to get to episode one, but now we are fully engaged. The subject matter is fascinating to us both. I was a fan of Dempsey the actor from his Grey’s Anatomy role, but his real-life passion to be a real racecar driver like Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Paul Newman before him lend itself to magic on screen.

Watching this well-done project is a purely delightful, educational, and fascinating Simple Joy.

My husband’s embrace. Marriage is so difficult to navigate at times. When the road goes one way my tires veer off path at times. Ego, stubbornness, and embarrassment can lead to isolation and resentments. But my husband, always putting his love for me, for us, first, held out a proverbial peace offering.
By accepting I was granted the truly most sacred and highest held Simple Joy I know: being in his warm, caring, accepting, and always loving embrace.

What I have learned over the years writing Simple Joys is that I am human in every sense of the word. I am fallible, I err, and I fumble. My mistakes are often repeated and my evolution is slow and cumbersome.

But I have also learned that I’ve been blessed to find Simple Joys throughout the good and bad. I’ve been challenged and met the challenge. I’ve been pained and got through the pain. I’ve been childlike and selfish and have grown from my weaknesses.

Mostly I’ve learned that I have all of the Simple Joys I could ever want in the family I created. My husband, my oldest boy, my middle boy, my little girl, … and me.

Wishing you all a week full of self-realizations and Simple Joys.