Isn’t that what we’d all like? Right now. Everyday? A little something wonderful to notice, to take in to ourselves, to bring joy and warm the heart.
Good news is more than just something better than the usual chaos of the social media and news outlets. It’s restorative. Good news reminds us that there is life, love and therefore joy in each day. Mr. Rogers suggested that we look for the helpers when terrible things are happening. Helpers are the good in bad news. When we see helpers, we feel hope. Hope helps us keep going even when things are hard.
I like to think of good news as something that is noticed. It may come via the airwaves or the internet, but it may also be something that catches my attention in the course of a day to remind me of the extraordinariness of the plain and simple.
Yesterday morning at about 7:30 I was beginning a session in the outdoor garden space I’ve been gifted to work in during Covid. There’s a little fenced area around the patio where my table sits, a fountain and a bird feeder. There’s usually a chorus of birds singing away as they flit from fig tree to feeder. As I looked up beyond the fig tree and across the drive, a very large and beautiful owl flew down and landed on the far fountain. He or she took a long drink and looked one way and then the other. Another drink. More looking both ways. It saw us watching. And it sat and gazed as we sat and gazed back. I think we were in awe and the owl was in assessment of our presence as friend or foe. For a good long 5 minutes we watched that majestic bird drink and look back at us. Then it spread its impressive wings and flew away.
An ordinary moment in nature. A bird was thirsty. Two people were doing an activity together. And yet, it was extraordinary because we rarely get the joy of seeing an owl in daylight or for that long. What a gift! How extraordinary! It was just what was needed, and we weren’t too busy to stop and notice. The person I was with at the time happens to especially love birds.
So for me that was good news. Nature is still in rhythm. Owls still rest and refresh themselves. Birds still sing. Clouds still bring rain to nourish our land.
The wise owl brought good news: some things are still going quite well.
What is your good news? What have you noticed that is joyful or peaceful for you? I’d love to know.
If you need a boost, there’s an organization that I admire that is full of good. It’s called the Human Kindness Foundation. Mr. Rogers was a supporter of their vision of a world where everyone practices kindness, and of their mission to encourage more kindness in the world, beginning with people in our prisons and jails through the Prison-Ashram Project. They publish a newsletter that brings joy and sometimes tears, but always hope and a deep sense of the goodness that people are truly capable of. I invite you to take a peek at their website. https://www.humankindness.org
Well . . . I set out to give you an update on what I’m doing, and wound up sharing today’s inspirations, hehe. But not to let other news fall by the wayside: beginning next week my morning hours in the garden are 8:00am – 11:00am. That’s a bit later adjusting for later sunrise and cooler temperatures. And you can schedule online. I don’t yet know what the winter will bring, but that will reveal itself in time. I’ll keep you posted.
Until next time . . . tidings of comfort and joy.
