There are those moments when, I believe, that if you closed your eyes and thought hard enough, you could live in them forever.
Last night was a friend of mine's birthday. Being of age and sick of our theses, we all decided to go out and get drinks. We had planned to head over to the Gryffin Tavern, but due to a snag in the plans, we ended up at the Royal Oak. See, this didn't matter to me. I have so many (good) memories from that place. We sat around for a little while, but had to leave much earlier than we had planned because they were closing. But, it wasn't this moment I wanted to make eternal.
When we left the Tavern, we had no idea what we were going to do. We knew we didn't want to go back to campus: our schoolwork ws there. But, Front Royal being the strange town that it is, everything was closed. Then, one of the girls suggested it: "Let's go to the Park!" Of course, you can imagine the rest of the girls followed this suggestion up by many affirming screams. Ten minutes later, we were walking into one of the parks in Front Royal.
I actually don't know exactly where we were last night, and it doesn't matter. All that mattered was that the nine of us had the time of our lives. I must confess, it's been a good two years since I've been on a swing. As soon as we arrived, I jumped on and one of the guys began pushing me. I was flying high. Soon, all the guys joined in suit. As we soared higher on the swings, the more it seemed our ages were falling. Suddenly, there weren't eight thesis-writing college seniors, but eight twelve year old children screaming and yelping as the swings went higher.
And then it happened. One of those rare moments were it feels like the world suddenly stops moving and there's nothing wrong in the whole world. With as many Crosses with which I've been struggling over the last few weeks along with my thesis, I've been very bogged down. At that moment last night, however, they all disappeared. As I soared higher on the swing, I could feel my heart getting bigger and seeming to free fly in my chest. My head cleared and my sould began to glow. I was so happy. With people I cared about laughing and giggling around me, I knew I wanted to live in that moment forever.
My Philosophy: It's all about the swings and playgrounds, about the company of friends and family, ice cream and sprinkles, roasting pumpkin seeds on a chilly Fall day and picking flowers in the Spring, it's all about the Little Things. Because these are God's little love notes to us, litte reminders of how much He loves us. And He wants us to milk every moment. I do.
The older I get, the more I have to worry about. Someday, God willing, it will be a husband and children to worry about. Things in life way us down, especially as we climb the proverbial hill. In the next year, I have to worry about a thesis, graduating, finding a job, a place to live. And more worries will come with those territories. With these, come wisdom, a blessing that is necessary to life. But, as I grow older, I hope to never lose the love of the little things. They are so important and so very dear. Because it really is the little things we value most.
I wish the same for everyone else. I wish that people never let pride or reputation stop them from doing fun things, like running towards a swing or having some ice cream with chocolate sauce. That people never feel inhibited to let the child out of themselves. I hope, instead, that people take the most out of these little blessings. I think there's a little bit of Heaven in all of God's love notes. They are treats to lead us Home.
