Waves of Happiness

Every ray of sun at this season of the year is like finding a lone bloom in an empty bed of flowers, struggling to make its appearance, to breathe life back into the vast cold emptiness.  Amid an abundance of blooms, that pitiful little display of a single flower would surely go unnoticed.

Driving down the road, I see the rays of sun and I cannot suppress the rising waves of anticipation of brighter days, promises of hope and renewal, beauty and rebirth, waves and waves -- ENDLESS WAVES -- of the simplest pleasures of this world that until taken away, they go unnoticed.  Taken for granted.

There is a chance -- a chance, whether big or small, it remains uncertain -- that my oldest son Zach, whom I haven't seen since August, will be able to fly to Marco Island to join us this year in July.  There's an even better chance that my middle son Gavin will manage to get several days of vacation from his current job in the Pittsburgh area to join us there also.  To think that I'll have all of my sons at Marco Island for the first time in -- YEARS -- is joy indescribable.

Closing my eyes, I hear the rolling waves of the surf, the birds, the laughter ... I smell the salt in the air ... I feel the wind on my skin, in my hair, the sun on my face...I see the breaks of those waves, iridescent streams of light dancing on air ... I imagine sitting around together on the beach, laughing, talking, remembering, celebrating...and I am awash with an outpouring of love and cries of gratitude.  These are the moments in life that eclipse all the struggles, the stifling, cooped-up, long winter days.

Let me remember ...

Ludovico Einaudi

One of my favorite incredibly gifted musicians!