Shed a Little Light
A slice of warm cornbread with butter.
A couple of slices of cornbread in a glass of cold milk.
A foot massage.
A baby’s smile directed right at you on Aisle 9 at the grocery store.
Watching “Nacho Libre” starring Jack Black.
Watching “Napoleon Dynamite” with your best friend.
At least ten minutes daily of intentional quiet time, solitude and meditative prayer.
Stretching—your body and your mind.
Reading something by Dr. Seuss, the late humorist Art Buchwald, or Mark Twain.
Playing with a puppy that is not your responsibility.
Eating a double scoop ice cream cone (if you’re lactose intolerant, a snow cone works just as well).
A day road trip to a small-town eating establishment.
Paying for a stranger’s lunch at that same café.
Saving money for something you really want.
Buying that something with cash and not credit.
Humming an old hymn.
Fishing.
Teaching your grandchildren how to fish.
Watching an elderly couple or two teenagers hold hands in the movie theater.
Taking one day at a time, sometimes just one hour at a time.
Scrolling at night on your phone and laughing aloud when no one is around.
Saying a curse word, with intent but discretion.
Phoning your children to see how their day went.
Taking a walk.
Naps, postcards in the mail, and potato soup on a snowy day in April.
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I have to say, I did not see that last one coming, but it did make me feel better because it brought some much-needed moisture to these dry parts of Texas.
Here’s to doing small things that can bring big joy.
Snyder, Texas, native Sue Jane Sullivan is a retired schoolteacher whose thoughtprovoking commentary appears occasionally in several West Texas newspapers, including The Texas Spur and The Caprock Courier.
