Red Deadnettle in the ever growing grass of spring

No…not the hotel. And no…not the landscaping company of Giuliani fame. I’m talking the four seasons of the year. Beautiful and somewhat delineated from each other by calendar dates. Not so much on your trip to take The Big Birdhouse to the dealer to get her fridge fixed/replaced. We saw four seasons in the span of about thirty minutes. We went from sunny with big puffy white clouds to rain to sleet to graupel and back. The temperature dropped. There was thunder and lightning. Ahhh…fickle Mother Nature in all her glory!

We dropped off the camper and implored them to have her ready by the first of May for the trip to Colorado. They said the small refrigerators are easier to get than big ones so it’s a pretty fair bet it’ll happen. I hope. If they can’t get it ready by then, I’ll just pick it up and drop it back off on the way home in May and they can fix it then. I can always use a cooler. 

My daughter has asked why I don’t just fly. Well, there are a number of reasons. Flights these days get cancelled at a moment’s notice. I can’t get tied up like that. People have seemingly lost their ever loving minds on flights these days and act like spoiled two year olds that didn’t get the right cookie and they need a nap. I don’t have the time nor patience to deal with that. Rental cars are exorbitant nowadays and I don’t want the hassle. I’ll be perfectly fine pulling The Birdhouse out there and back. I’ll feel better having my own little house with my own stuff and my own bed. It’s an adventure, right?

We did a thing yesterday. For the very first time since February 2020…we ate inside a restaurant. *gasp* I explained to the hostess that this was our first time back in and, while we are not afraid, we would appreciate a table away from others. She smile and said, “No explanation needed. I’ve got just the right place for you!” She picked up two menus and took us around the corner to a booth away from everyone. We had southern barbecue and sat and visited…like normal people. It felt weird…but wonderful!

By the time we got home, the temp had dropped and the rain had all but stopped. The wind blew some things around on the deck so Mr. FixIt straightened those out. That’s when I noticed the miniature rhododendron by the pool had a few blooms on it. I ran outside to document this momentous occasion on my phone camera. As I wrote this, I had the window open…listening to the birds and the spring peepers singing their loves songs. 

Today is going to be lower key. Taxes, knitting, maybe a softball game if they don’t get rained out. Mundane things. Things we take for granted as “more of the same”. But, what would happen if we changed our expectations to one of gratitude for the opportunity to do things that sustain us? What if we look for the extraordinary in the every day humdrum of life? What if we invite Jesus to come do some fun stuff with us today? You know…I have a feeling Jesus loves to do fun things with us too and not just hear requests for help with the hard stuff. 

How will you fill your world with gratitude today?

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“Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever.”

Psalm 136:1 ESV