Celebrations, February 13, 2015

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Welcome to the February 13 edition of the Celebrating the Small Things blog hop, started by VikLit and now run by Lexa Cain, our fearless new leader and her two wonderful co-hosts L.G. Keltner @ Writing Off The Edge
Katie @ TheCyborgMom

When I was fairly young, perhaps 16, I read a book by Robert Raynolds with the title The Sinner of Saint Ambrose.

Don't tell a sixteen-year-old this, but that age is rather young.  I thought I knew all sorts of things and have, over the years, realized that I certainly do not, which is a good thing.

The book which, if you ignore the rather wretched cover, was excellent - a tapestry of far-flung travels, the crumbling Roman Empire, Saint Augustine before he mellowed, Stilicho the Vandal, and other historic characters told in a human way while somehow keeping their legendary feel.  The narrator's voice, overlying it with the feel of a man thinking back from very old age, gave the story an almost dreamlike feel... "Ah yes...  This is how it was...  I remember it well..."   I do think I need to purchase another copy and reread it.

I underlined all through it, every time something struck me.  There was a lot of green ink (my favorite color at that time) throughout it.  My favorite quote from author Robert Raynolds was:

The Wonder of Life is Composed Mostly of Trivia.

I'm not sure why I underlined that at the age of 16 years.  Maybe I had a flash of perception.  At any rate, I think Mr. Raynolds was right.  Those things that make our lives the most wonderful are the ones that come to us day by day.  The driver smiling at me as I inch my car forward to allow her room to go into a parking lot.  The pre-dawn sky that I see through oak branches.  The taste of a cup of hot tea first thing in the morning.  The sudden weight of my 19 year old goofball of a cat as he lands on my lap, curls up, and blinks up at me with myopic affection, his white whiskers against his black self lending an air of dignity that is most misleading.

Friday afternoons, watching the work week wind down and realize that I can open my eyes at 5:30 AM (when I usually get up) smile, and turn over for another couple hours' sleep.

So I'm celebrating the trivial things as well as the Work In Progress that is drawing near completion, the prospect of doing a beta-read this weekend, and the new recipe I found for Vietnamese-style grilled pork (which I may use with hanger steak...).

...and I should also add that I am finalizing my post responding to two 'Very Inspiring Blogger' awards.  I had to wait till I stopped blushing.  The response and the tagging have been fun.  Wait and see!

So what are you  celebrating today?  (enjoy them, and enjoy your weekend!)