Raindrops from Nova Scotia

I didn't realize it until I stepped outside of the schoolhouse and all of a sudden freezing, silver dollar sized raindrops starting falling out of a bright blue sky on this, a humid, hot Texas day. And then there was that smell of fresh rain - renewal. Release! Part of me wanted to stand there, face lifted to the sky, and allow raindrops to baptize me into a new beginning. But then part of me wanted to sprint to the car because the drops were abnormally cold, like getting hit with melted snowballs from Nova Scotia. I guess I did something in between - an amble mixed with shriek!(?)

While musing over the odd weather, I had my epiphany. It was so clear, and I felt sort of stupid for not seeing it before. This surprisingly simple realization was that my day was good, not because I had done something earth shattering or because I was receiving any sort of pat on the back; it was good for all the normal reasons. My classes went well; I randomly met a wonderfully interesting (and talented) photographer and got to lose myself in his stories for a little while; I ate (and proposed marriage to) the best brownie in the entire world; some former students who are now extremely collegiate came to visit, to "check in" with Ms. H; I received a lovely, LOVELY letter from one of my dearest friends; I spotted the biggest butterfly I have EVER seen in my entire life (hard to miss!); and I observed a little boy wearing coke bottle glasses as he found a "specimen" on the sidewalk and had to research it more closely by getting down on all fours to study it from every angle. These silly, silly, globally "meaningless", things are what make the world good.

Today, despite the horror stories in the news, despite the politics and the uncertainties, despite our fear culture, things are good. I forget that under the weight sometimes..