Little Things

    I've found that one of the gifts of growing older (or having more experience with life) is that it really doesn't take much to make me happy anymore. Some may see that as weird and maybe it is. I choose to think of it as a blessing. I've had a few little pleasures come into my life this week that I'd like to share with you.
  On Monday I decided that I was going to plant the packet of seeds that came with some honey I bought in Charleston. The company that produces the honey is also active in the preservation of honeybees. One of the things they do is give a packet of seeds away with each purchase. The seeds are a mix of various flowers that attract bees. Some of them are annuals and some perennials. I recognized the names of several of the flowers. I was pretty sure that some of the seeds would sprout even in my zone four garden. (Charleston is zone eight.)
  I put on a pair of old jeans so that I could go and work in the garden. To my surprise and delight, the jeans fit. Last year they were pretty tight. Not this year. The fit was perfect. That doesn't happen very often. I tried on another pair that were older but not worn enough to do garden work. They fit too. This made me happy. I have a couple extra pairs of jeans to wear that I didn't really have before.
   Yesterday I got another small blessing. I'm working on a personal progress program though my church.  The purpose is to foster spiritual and personal growth. There are several values to study and each requires a project that takes at least ten hours to complete. My project for the value I'm working on is the organize several areas in our home. I started with the drawer where I keep my tea. I have an overflow area in a cupboard that I cleared out as well. In the process of organizing I found some tea that I had bought, but never used. I forgot I had it. That made me happy. I like to blend various teas when I brew and now I have more options.  This will also help to stretch the tea I already have.
   There were several large tea canisters that were empty. I put them in the store room as they might be needed later. Relocating the empty canisters freed up the overflow area for other things. I put all my hot chocolate mixes where the canisters used to be. Now all the hot chocolate stuff is in one place. I was also able to move a collection of travel mugs into the cupboard as well. This makes the counter top less crowded, plus I know where are the travel mugs are so I can grab one quickly when I want it. An excellent start.
   This morning when I put my hair in a ponytail before working out, I noticed the ponytail was a little thicker. Before it was so thin it looked like a rat's tail. I realized that I wasn't losing anywhere near as much hair as I had been.  My hair is growing back. It probably won't be as thick as it used to be, but I'm all right with that. Just the fact that I have hair makes me happy.
   I don't miss the lush South Carolina foliage anymore. I looked out a few days ago and noticed that the grass is green. Almost like a well manicured golf course. The trees are starting to leaf out. While they are nowhere near the fully leaved trees I saw on our vacation, they will be. It won't be long.
  There's a woman I know whose email address is noticehappythings. That pretty much sums up what has happened this week so far. Each of these things have been small and could easily been overlooked. I'm grateful that I 'm at a place in my life where I can notice these things.....