What a Treat!

One Saturday this past Fall, when the autumn colors were at its peak,  we went for a ride with Gracie to try out  my new camera.

 I wanted to take some photos, and if any came out well, we could  make them into poster/paintings to put on the walls of our new room.   It'd be a great way to remember our beautiful upstate New York area, while we're living down here in also beautiful Florida.    .

Paul. . . God bless him. He took one of my pictures and had it made into a poster/painting.  He gave it to me last Saturday. The photo is of a little fishing hole where he liked to stop and fish. 
 ( Paul liked to meander and found this little spot.)

If I must say so myself, the colors are delightful.  I used the camera's vivid color setting. It has  the most appealing lemon yellows, greens, and light blues.  

There was a sister photo to this one. . . of Paul and Gracie looking for fish down into the water together.  It is adorable.  He has on a red shirt and she has on a red harness.  So - I had that one made up today, and now we have two matching photo/paintings. 

As I was waiting for this photo to be completed, (I knew it was going to be a while - at least over an hour,) so I had some lunch at Walmart's new Burger King restaurant that's been opened up only a week. 

You could tell it was new -  There weren't many chairs and tables set up yet. It was very crowded.    But I found one small empty table with two chairs.    I had planned on being by myself: It was going to be a long wait, so  I was going to  have a cup of decaf coffee, some lunch, and read my Kindle.

  A little, tiny  elderly lady, with a cane, came into the restaurant.  She had a hamburger, coffee and fries and was trying to navigate everything with her cane and found a seat  at an eating bar facing out to the rest of the  store. 

 I asked if she'd like to join me.  Oh, she was so grateful. She didn't know how she was going to manage that high stool with the cane and all her food.  (I know how she felt).

  Well, I had a most delightful time listening to her talk.  She ended up being  quite a conversationalist.  I had her life history before the hour was out.  She just kept on talking and talking.  I don't remember when I've had such an interesting experience.  She even included whoever was sitting at the table next to us. (which included a couple who told us they were celebrating their 52nd anniversary today, and when they left, there was another  gentleman who was able to tell us the name of the sport we couldn't guess: lacrosse.)  And they were as spellbound as I was.

 One of the things she said was -

When she was a little girl, her mother took  her by the hand and told her - Now. . . when you're out in public, make sure you always smile at people who look at you, and if they look you in the eye - well - then you must say smile and say hello - how are you?  because you never know if they've had a good or a bad day, and if they've had a bad day, then they will be happier for you being friendly.  And so she told this to her four children and they've always been friendly and outgoing.  They're in their fifties, she said.  Except for  one who died at age forty-seven.  She lived up in Massachusetts and  worked in medicine.

 She'd been retired  since 1991 after having three bad breathing episodes.  I had thought she was lonely and probably needed to talk to some one so I was happy to oblige, but  that obviously wasn't the case because she'd just finished volunteering at the Jacaranda Library. She's been volunteering for twelve years!   She said she was quite tired today.  She started work at 8:00 that morning.  She had to get some milk. That's why she was at Walmart.  She said she never seemed to get just one thing though.  (Doesn't that sound familiar?)

The hour went by very quickly and we both said our good-byes.  What a treat that was!

Then I got home here, we put up the other picture, and I started on my computer.  I found this saying.  I wrote it down, but forgot to check where it's from, but I'm still going to write it out so you can enjoy it too. 

Happiness can be found even in the smallest places.  Whether you're having the best or the worst day ever, more joy is just waiting to be discovered.  The next time you're feeling blue, remember that happiness is unavoidable and may even be right within your reach.