Discoveries

Yesterday was possibly the best day I've had in a year. I'm serious. Nothing sensational happened--I just spent the 90 degree day out by the pool, reading a little, watching the kids swim a little. It was just terrific.

What makes a great day anyway?

For me it was going outside yesterday morning with my coffee and hearing the spring birds sing their lovely song... logging in a few hours of work and coming home and taking my rightful spot in a chair beside the pool. The sun was in all its mighty glory yesteday. I'm not sure what it is about the first hot days of summer that dance with my soul. Perhaps it takes me back to my younger days...Deana and I liked to occasionally skip out of 7th period and take joy rides when those first days of summer reared their sensationally sunny head. We would ride to the lake, to Humpback Bridge, just anywhere as long as there was music on the radio and wind in our hair. We used to do the same thing in college--those first hot days would find us on a road trip to Hinton or heading off to Beckley to see what kind of trouble we could stir up.

Nature is a good place to start to figure out who the heck you are and to continue to find out who you are...It may be basking in the light of the sun, or counting the stars in the sky on a clear night, or spotting the first "lovers' moon" of the spring. It might be laying in the yard watching the clouds turn into mythical creatures or exotic animals. It might be leaning back against the trunk of a maple tree and finding shade and solace. As I approach my 32nd birthday, it's fitting to think back to the girl I was when I was skipping 7th period. The funny thing is that she's really not much different than who I have become. She was a little more fearless and confident, but all in all, she is pretty much the same--I still drive to the lake on that first warm spring day...I still enjoy taking a ride across Hayes Gap at sunset. I am still rendered speechless when I see a shooting star in the night sky.

I have discovered a few things about me over the last 15 years, however that I didn't know during 7th period. I discovered that, no matter how little sleep you have had, you can still stay up all night to care for a sick child. I discovered that spit-up stains stuff--like really bad. I discovered that I loved my dog a great deal...but when she bit my baby, our love was over. I discovered that I could make a mean Play-Doh pizza. I discovered that $100/week was not an adeqaute grocery budget for 5 people. I discovered that the human body is pretty darn flexible--and I have the battle marks to prove it. I discovered that hearing your child say his or her prayers at night can touch places in your soul that you didn't even realize existed. I discovered that mini-vans are neither cool nor sexy, but neither is a butt stuck up in the air while trying to wrestle three kids out of the backseat of a car. I've discovered that the voices in my head are usually wrong, but the ones in my heart are usually right. I've learned that it's never too late to try something new. I have discovered that plain vanilla soft serve is even better than a hot fudge sundae. I have learned that something happens after childbirth that makes you queasy when you ride the Scrambler. I have discovered that age brings on self-doubt. "Am I skinny enough? Am I pretty enough? Am I cool enough?" And I have also learned that age and time also bring you to your truest friends and family that will answer for you, "Well, probably not, but you're good enough for us."