A Good Cup of Joe

     Dogs barking, an electric saw buzzing, birds chirping, rustling of leaves as the breeze lightly blows...Sunday afternoon backyard sounds that fill the air under a blue sky full of wispy white clouds sailing by ever so slowly. A morning of ordinary people of all walks of life under one roof communing with coffee, babies, music, tears and laughter, prayers and praise. Dispersed but yet still united to filter into the bigger community beyond. Like a good cup of coffee that's been filtered into the caraffe each morning upon our stove top, may we all taste oh so good. Not bitter, not too sweet, not overbrewed or scorched from sitting upon the heat too long, but just right. Illiciting that deeply satisfying response, "Oh, that tastes so good!"
     Everyone needs a bit of respite. A cancer diagnosis, loss of a pregnancy, termination of a job, conflict in a relationship, denial of applications for any number of things, disappointment, unmet expectations, life throws us for a loop and we are left reeling. While grateful for a good many things, those situations we find ourselves in beyond our control can devastate and leave us holding a bag of unanswered questions. 
     Hopefully, more often than not and even in the midst of our own 
"stuff" we can offer that satisfying cup of joe to another, sit beside them, listen, empathize and discover our spirits have lifted by the time we say our goodbyes. Other times, we are in need of the gift of another's time, of their hand reaching out to offer us that warm respite. 
     The sun continues to rise through the trees each morning to bathe our yard in brilliant light spilling into the rooms of our house, the moon to follow each night upon its setting, deer to graze and laze upon the grass and clouds to sail across the blue sky every direction the eye can see. In a world where everything changes, there are some certainties upon which we can depend. Not many. 
     Change, things happening beyond our control, not as we expected, those are certainties as well. No one escapes them. How we deal with them is crucial. 
     A friend reminded me today--over that cup of coffee--of a great man we both love and respect who "learned to be content".  And so I am still learning. Those words encouraged me. We gave each other that gift of time, listening, empathy, encouragement. Bags of unanswered questions remain. Disappointment lurks in the shadows. But gratitude is deeply felt, wonder fills the heart and contentment is a little more tangible tonight.