Pages

Monday, May 21, 2012

Watching the eclipse and other sights.

The sky darkened last evening, but it was shrouded by mist and fog and clouds. No way to see the sun, or the moon, or both of them shadowing the western world. My camera noticed a blue hydrangea and stopped to focus there. I would have missed it, I thought, my eyes still trying to see anything unusual in the sky.


We came indoors, disappointed. Dinner was prepared and eaten. Dishes gathered, washed and put away. Our neighbors remained outside in the cold, enjoying each other's company; children running around the yard, squealing with delight. It was a bust of a day for us, I thought. If we had children around, it wouldn't have mattered at all that the eclipse was invisible.  The children would have kept us busy, delighted. Our cameras would have captured their every move.

We do tend to focus on the big things, the once in a lifetime event. We mark our days and hours by these events, ignoring everything else around us. Yet, our comfort, our pleasures, our survival, depends on the little things we do everyday. Cooking, shopping, walking, delighting in watching our young ones full of life.




22 comments:

Brian Miller said...

we do tend to focus on those big things at times...and miss all the little joys along the way...children do tend to fill that time as well...the clouds kept us from seeing the super moon as well....have a lovely monday!

dianefaith said...

This morning as I weeded the raised bed in my back yard, a shiny gray lizard slithered out of the soil. I'll remember him all day. You're right; little things matter. I enjoyed your writing, as always.

Amanda Summer said...

i would have been disappointed as well to await such a celestial event and then have the clouds settle in. we humans do have a unique ability to focus on one thing to the detriment of others. sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes not.

Unknown said...

And if we spend to much time looking up, we miss what's right in front of us!

Helga said...

The eclipse, I had totally forgotten about it; too many problems in your life can do that to you. Driving along Wilshire Blvd., we saw young people sitting on the sidewalk, and I remembered the moon, the sun, the one-time opportunity. Of course, we had no sunglasses (do they work anyways?), but we saw a partial eclipse reflected in a shop window. I had to have a peek at the real thing, bad choice, my eyes started hurting and spinning. Finally at home, tall buildings blocked our view - maddening. I'm tired, eclipse, shmeclipse. What's the big deal with an eclipse at sunset time... when it's going to grow dark anyways; in the morning, at noon - yes, that's different. So I didn't see it. But I have to admit, there is this nagging feeling that I missed out on something I shouldn't have.

Catalina Aldridge said...

I completely missed the eclipse & it was all Evan's fault. :) We were enjoying his bath, practicing writing his name on the wall w/ soap crayons. Love the 'our' moments.

Patricia said...

Maybe it is because I am moving into another "phase" of life, but I am noticing more of those little things than I used to. As a result, I often go to bed at night with a lovely sense of gratitude. Too many years I looked at the ground, watching for the cracks in the sidewalk!

Sally Wessely said...

You are so right! Thanks for the reminder.

yaya said...

But you did catch that beautiful blue hydrangea! That's worth a smile!

musicwithinyou said...

Your blue hydrangea is just as wonderful as the eclipse. Don't worry I didn't get to see it either, but what you might miss one day there is always something around the corner you will get to see

Linda Myers said...

I'm glad for the people sitting on the sidewalk. We had too many clouds to observe it. Besides, I forgot until an hour afterwards!

Joani said...

Thanks for the reminder. I've been trying to take the joy of small stuff rather than looking for a large one. Thanks for sharing. Have a great day.

the walking man said...

I think we forget t is the little things that ARE the big things.

Tom said...

We, too, were socked in with clouds and rain and mist. But when we walked the dog in last night's chill, we heard the sounds of young people, outside having a party, somewhere around the corner. It cheered out hearts.

#1Nana said...

We had clouds too. We spent the day working in the yard and garden. I feel the joy everyday now when I pull something from the garden and serve it with dinner. Last night we had our first fresh lettuce from the garden...baby fresh and tender! We've instituted a "radish with every meal" policy so we use up our stock of radishes before the next wave of harvesting. It is the little things that make my life joyful.

Grandma Yellow Hair said...

So nice to meet you! I found your from YaYa's site.
I am looking forward to getting to know you and to being the newest of many many followers.
I just turned 64 so I am trying my best to enjoy more of the little things in life especially now.
Enjoyed your post and others today
Maggie

Diane said...

I am so sorry that you missed the eclipse but Eva's comment is so right. Keep well Diane

Vagabonde said...

I just read all your past posts. You say that your folks were from the country and as your grow older you all look to go back to the country. I wonder why it is that when we grow older we would like to go back to the place where we grew up? I am in reverse mode – we live in an almost rural area of Georgia but I would love to go back living in Paris where I grew up – back to a large city really. I guess that it why it’s good to be close to Atlanta – because it has a good airport and we can leave easily, and often. So you still have an accent? I do too and am asked about it quite often. I did not see the eclipse either but saw beautiful photos of it on the web.

Welshcakes Limoncello said...

You're right - we do tend to focus on these big events but little things can be just as miraculous.

Maggie May said...

Its the small stuff that keeps me going!
Maggie X

Nuts in May

Shannon Lawrence said...

I always try to savor the simple pleasures in life. I missed the eclipse, too, so caught up in troubles that I plain forgot. But I remember watching one in elementary school, all us kids out on the playground at non-recess time, holding the special smoked lenses. I remember that excitement, and don't think I could have matched that as an adult. It would have been fun to share this one with my kids, though.

Hilary said...

SO true. Everything counts in the life experience.