"It's in the Smallest Details"

For about 14 years now I have intermittently read Sarah Ban Breathnach's book "Simple Abundance".  It's a daily reading book that you read each day of the year.   In all the years I'm sure I have read each page numerous times, although maybe not all in the same year.  This year is no different.  I have started it again.  Early in the book she talks about gratitude.  She made this statement this week… "it is in the smallest details that the flavor of life is savored".  She's referring to the simple stuff in life that we just don't take the time so often to see.  I'm included in inconsistently looking for the small details, except for one thing, butterflies.  The smallest details I most often notice are butterflies.  The reason?  My mother LOVED butterflies.  If you knew my mother, you knew that about her.  My mother passed away in 2003.  She had painted a beautiful water color purple-blue butterfly that we took to the printer and had copies made into thank you cards.  Everyone who remembered our mother with a thought, a gift, a plant or a memorial got a copy of that butterfly she painted.  Mine is framed.  Every, and truthfully, every time I see a butterfly, I think of her.  I saw one Monday, two actually.  They were very small and white.  No idea what kind they were.  I thought to myself and always say (sometimes out loud)… "hi mom" when I see one.  I also thought, "what is that little butterfly doing in the middle of a stripped cotton field in the middle of January?"  No idea…but thoughts of my mother are always a blessing to me.  One of my most memorable memories of seeing one was shortly after my mom died.  Within the first year, my sister and I went with my dad to see a grief counselor.  He was already begun dating Betty only a few months after mom died.  He was talking about marrying her.  My sister and I did not think enough time had gone by for him to remarry…in "our" opinion.  We knew he wanted to alleviate his pain and not be alone.  He couldn't stand to be sad.  Anyway, sitting in the office of this counselor she had a big window wall, in fact one wall was just a window looking into a small flower garden outside her office. In that garden that day sitting there with our dad, talking about our mom, my sister and I both saw a beautiful butterfly fluttering around the plants.  We just looked at each other and sort of raised our eyebrows in disbelief.  We definitely talked about it later.  I don't remember if my dad saw it or not.  My sister and I felt our mom was there in this discussion and that she was ok with whatever happened.  It gave us comfort in way we did not have.  The sight of that beautiful butterfly was a blessing to us.  It was truly a lesson that if you look around for the small things, the details, you will find many blessings in our life. 


Encourage One Another