The Not-So-Little Things 6/28/2020

By: Jennifer Richardson Holt

What a world huh?  What a crazy life we lead, am I right?  When they say that there is nothing new under the sun I am starting to wonder if this year took that as a challenge.  I think that we tend to, and lately understandably so, get caught up in, well, everything.  The big, overwhelming, disconcerting, inexplicable stuff tends to push everything else out of the room and it’s all we can really see despite how nice other furnishings in the place may be.  I don’t think we mean to get distracted for the most part but when life comes in like a flood, or pandemic, or riot, or controversy, or Saharan dust cloud it is easy to see the giant in the middle of the room instead of the other nice pieces that give the room its character.  Today I want to try to take your, and my, focus off of the staggering behemoths in front of us to be sure we don’t miss the abundant bright spots that are masquerading everywhere amidst the chaos.  If you are willing to look beyond the storms, the blessings are many and very much worth the look.

If you have ever been fortunate enough to see the end of day where the American south meets the Gulf of Mexico then you have born witness to more beauty in one single event than a large portion of the population is privy to in a multitude of occasions.  When you watch a blazing sun become something softer and drowsier while shifting from white heat to a rich golden glow something downright magical happens.  The events of the day melt just like the blue of the sky.  As the sky’s cornflower hue morphs into fiery tones of scarlet, magenta and coral whatever the day gave you that felt less than relaxing fades as quickly as the heat of the day.  Troubles tend release to drift on the breezes that skim the peaks of the blue-green waves and tousle your clothing. Sea gulls remind you to slow down as they casually meander the white sand and once the extravagant show of colors have dissolved into the darkening firmament you can’t help but feel some strange deep satisfaction. This display of dusk, despite whatever the daylight hours held, has made it a good day.

Another point of light to hold onto when things can become shadowy are those simpler, furrier companions that many of us share our lives with. Have you really experienced what unbridled joy is until you’ve seen a hysterically wagging tail when you return home from a long day?  If you’ve ever had a long tongue that has recently been in questionable places sneak across your face in a succulent display of affection then you know the feeling that is an endearing mixture of disgust and adoration that such a gesture brings.  Those huge clear eyes that pierce the very soul with their authentic devotion can melt the stoniest of hearts, and if the head is tilted with the look? Go ahead and face it, you’re a goner…in the best way possible of course.  But perhaps your four-legged friend is of the feline persuasion then you too know what joy can be conjured by closed eyes and a well-placed soft head butt.  The savage beast of a person can be soothed by a furry cheek rubbing across theirs accompanied by the distant tractor rumble of a contented purr.  It really is a gloriously intoxicating sound. If only everyone could be so easily persuaded to fall into pile of serenity by our mere existence.

Now, if you’ll excuse me whilst I take a bit of a southerly stroll on this list of loveliness, and if you regularly read my writing you will and if not well, you’ll either learn to or stop reading, there is a particular joy in this part of the country that warms the insides particularly well.  It is sometimes called soul food. It also goes by the name of comfort food, though I am referencing the south-specific version of said comfort.  There are a few specific dishes that upon reflection can almost guarantee the eyes to close and a wistful sight to be elicited.  One specifically right now that comes to mind is made from scratch, buttermilk biscuits.  Now, I don’t mean to brag but, after years of practice, I make a pretty impressive biscuit.  I do believe both my husband and my father have said they were some of the best they’d ever had and if I am not mistaken the younger of the two may have said they were possibly better than his Granny’s.  Now, if someone says anything you cook is better than their Granny’s (unless their Granny couldn’t cook their way out of a wet paper bag) then we all know that is pretty high praise.  But I digress. So whether they be mine or biscuits from your favorite oven, the thought of the soft pillowy insides and that golden buttery crust outside…see here we have the problem of I must pause my writing to close my eyes and, you guessed it, wistfully sigh.  Whether you enjoy it with ladles full of one of the many varieties of gravy, paired with some glorious form of pork based delight or very simply steaming with butter dripping from its flaky layers, partaking of a biscuit is like being given a hug.  It’s a small, maybe insignificant pleasure but it can make a memory so poignant that, well, it requires a very literal pause to appreciate. 

And maybe, this last often overlooked element of life’s wonders is too broad of a topic. In fact I am almost sure that it is but, it is so all encompassing and vast that I cannot discount it. We are surrounded by it every day and it is almost guaranteed that we all take it for granted. We are in a veritable sea of it.  It actually can envelope all the others.  Delicious foods prepared with care and attention to detail are an expression of it with hopes to bring happiness to stomachs and hearts.  Cold nosed nuzzles and lingering leg rubs speak it in the simplest but most pure of terms.  Even a glorious gulf sunset painting with the entirety of sky and sea as its canvas is a masterpiece created just for us by an Artist who uses the whole of creation to speak this same message. Love is always around us. It could be a hearty plate full of your favorite meal prepared for you just because. It could be whiskers brushing against your face.  It could be in the form of mountains, rivers, oceans, valleys and all of the earth itself created for your pleasure.  It could be your very breath and heartbeat that is gifted to you each day.  Whether it be as small as a biscuit or as big as the world, the beautiful things, the really, truly good things, they’re always there giving the room its beauty and meaning.  Don’t let anything else junk up the decor.