Good Things On Bad Days

You have them, too. I know you do.
And if you tell me you don't I might not be able to talk to you for a little while.
That's just the way it is.

I'm talking about bad days.
You know, the ones that just feel a little off.
And the ones that just feel a little bad for no apparent reason (or at least one that you wish to share).

Today was one of those days for me.
And I didn't expect it at all.
It just happened, from the second I woke up and even to while I write this.

But....

(And I love this next part!)

Over the last little while I have come to know about and believe in, "Good Things On Bad Days".
Sometimes I like to call them,  "Compensatory Blessings".

These tend to pop up for me on days like today.
Days when I am trying really hard to do good.
Days when I am trying really hard to be good.
Days when I am trying really hard to feel good.
The days when none of that seems to work.
Because no matter what, the day just feels bad.

Yup. That was my today.
But just when I was wondering when I will ever feel better again, things began to happen.
Which means I have to share...
So here we go.


Good Thing On Bad Day Number One

Lunch with a friend at Cheesecake Factory.
The company was delightful!
And bonus: I ordered just right.
I almost never do this. Especially there. And most especially my last three visits there.
But I did today.
From the Dr. Pepper with lime, to the Lettuce Wraps, to the Peppermint Bark Cheesecake, it was oddly perfect for my today.

I love that!

(Insert shameless plug for this seasonal cheesecake offering:

Peppermint Bark Cheesecake.

Amazing. Get one. Today. And tomorrow. And every day till it is no longer available. 

Or until your jeans don't fit any more. 

Yes. It is that good.)

Good Thing On Bad Day Number Two

The lunch bill came. The server asked if it was to be split.
I said, "yes".
My friend said, "no".
She generously picked up the tab.
And I'm not ashamed to admit that I cried. Right there in the restaurant.
Because in spite of my feeling bad, I recognized this for what it was.
A really kind and compassionate gesture. And a Compensatory Blessing.
And I felt grateful that I have such good friends. And such a good God.



Good Thing On Bad Day Number Three

This one takes a little back story...

Once upon a time my kids were bitty and I started a Christmas tradition. Each year I would buy them an ornament for our tree that they could one day, when grown and married, take from the family Christmas tree to start their new family Christmas tree with. It's a sweet tradition and one that never died. And my married kids have enjoyed being able to have a sliver of their old to mix with their new. But it didn't take me long into this tradition to realize that one day all of those ornaments would be gone, because all of my kids would be gone. And unless I wanted to end up with a bare tree I needed to do something drastic. So I began to buy myself an ornament each year, too.

Well, this year I find all these ornaments trapped in what I call 'The Ornament Hostage Crisis'. It's kind of a tragically funny story that means...no ornaments. And an un-ornamented tree just won't do. So today I decided to improvise. And I purchased some inexpensive red, green and gold ornament balls, as well as some ingredients to make apple cinnamon ornaments like I did with my kids when they were little.

For more about this check out my daughter's blog post here:

http://karissaandscott.blogspot.com/2012/12/cinnamon-ornaments.html  

And then I went home...

(and this is where Good Thing On Bad Day Number Three really starts)

...where on my apartment door was a sticker from the FedEx man.
I had a package at the apartment office.
I thought for sure this would be a package stacked with legal inquiries.
But instead it was a box that looked like this:

(Gasp! Much too big for legal docs! Happy Surprise!)

And inside that box was a box that looked like this:

(Oooo! Pretty!!)

And inside that box was a box that looked like this:

(Ahhh. I love these kinds of boxes!)

And inside that box was this...

An early Christmas gift from Kid Middle and Her Man.
A Waterford ornament.
Similar to some that are currently under siege.
But new.
And for me a symbolically fresh start to ornament collecting.

I'm not ashamed to admit I cried. A lot. And laughed. A lot. At the same time. For a long time.

It took me two and a half more hours to recognize how very sentimental this was.
My own child was now passing to me a tradition that I had once started with her.
So blessed am I!



Good Thing On Bad Day Number Four

Later I picked up my mail (boring!).
And remembered that I didn't open yesterday's mail (not boring!).
So I did.
In yesterday's mail was a simple note from my sister.

Hi Kam,

Thought you might like these not-so-great quality pictures. : )

I love you!

Debbie

 And here my friends, is a look at a couple of those not-so-great quality pictures.

A picture of my big lovely house, on a big lovely hill, with a big lovely view...

And a picture of me and my dog. 

In my hot pink and hot green room. 

Where I wrote on the closet walls.

For more on this check out this: 

http://pointshootspeak.blogspot.com/2012/12/the-writing-on-wall.html 

This time I just smiled.
And then laughed out loud.
Then cried.
But only a little.
Because I've learned that the sad, the lonely, the dark, the gray, and the just-plain-bad-for-no-apparent-reason (or at least one that you wish to share) days will always come.

But they will often come with Compensatory Blessings - Good Things On Bad Days.

And most importantly, they will always, always give way to the happy, full, bright, sunny, and just-plain-good days that lie waiting around the corner.