Why I High-Fived a Squirrel This Morning
A Celebration of Everything Going Exactly Right
So, there I was, walking to get the mail,
and this squirrel just NAILED a jump between two trees.
I'm talking Olympic level athleticism here.
And I actually stopped and applauded.
The squirrel looked at me like I was insane.
Fair.
But here's the thing, that squirrel is LIVING.
That tree is TREE-ING with everything it's got.
The sun came up this morning without anyone asking it to,
just showed up for work like the absolute professional it is.
My neighbor's kid learned to ride a bike yesterday.
Fell down seven times.
Got up eight times.
Math has never been more beautiful.
I burned my toast this morning and you know what?
The smoke alarm works PERFECTLY.
I have a smoke alarm!
I have toast!
I have a toaster that's trying its very best!
Some guy at the grocery store let me go ahead of him in line
because I only had three items.
Three items! In the best of all possible worlds!
Where grocery stores exist! And strangers are kind!
My friend told me her tomato plant finally grew a tomato.
ONE tomato.
She sent me four pictures of it.
I looked at all four pictures.
That tomato is THRIVING.
Do you understand how many things had to go right
for you to be reading this?
Billions of years of cosmic fine tuning,
your parents meeting at exactly the right moment,
you learning to read,
someone inventing paper or screens or whatever you're looking at.
It's BONKERS.
It's wonderful.
It's exactly as it should be.
I'm not being sarcastic.
I'm not winking at the camera.
I genuinely think the universe woke up today
and decided to be SPECTACULAR,
and it succeeded,
and I got to be here for it,
and so did you,
and so did that squirrel.
To enter John and Paul's Unofficial Challenge, click below:
About the Creator
Tim Carmichael
Tim is an Appalachian poet and cookbook author. He writes about rural life, family, and the places he grew up around. His poetry and essays have appeared in Bloodroot and Coal Dust, his latest book.
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Heartfelt and relatable
The story invoked strong personal emotions
Easy to read and follow
Well-structured & engaging content
Excellent storytelling
Original narrative & well developed characters
Eye opening
Niche topic & fresh perspectives
On-point and relevant
Writing reflected the title & theme
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
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Zero grammar & spelling mistakes
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More stories from Tim Carmichael and writers in Critique and other communities.
Standing While Falling
Quotation from Friedrich Nietzsche "He who wrestles long with monsters should beware lest he himself become a monster. And if you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss also gazes into you. Man is not destroyed by suffering, but by the meaning he makes of it."
By LUCCIAN LAYTH2 days ago in Critique
Comments (25)
I love this. Love love love it. My NYR for 2026 is to, metaphorically, high five a squirrel every day ♥
Congratulations on tying for first place in our challenge, Tim. You should receive your tip shortly.
Just to let you know - https://shopping-feedback.today/writers/happiness-and-light-unofficial-challenge-the-results%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/span%3E%3C/a%3E%3C/p%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3C/div%3E%3Cdiv class="css-w4qknv-Replies">
Thank you for entering Tim. This poem and it's contents made me grin a lot. I can't argue you with your reasoning. Even as a self confessed grumpy git. Well done on Top Story. I am finally reading the entries and getting caught up before the scoring happens with John. Results should be released in the coming week.
I totally AGREE!
Reading this --- I now feel good and life is spectacular again. Thankyou for sharing and well deserved for Top Story xx
Congrats on TS! And best of luck in the challenge!
You have captured the 'bliss' often spoken of by great thinkers. Beautifully expressed and reminded me to be awe-struck a bit more today!
Naturally, I adore this poem, its exuberance and even the image. A delightful start to my day!
Thanks for throwing your hat in the ring Tim. This poem did more than put a smile on my face. It made me laugh through and through. It is a great day! Congrats on Top Story.
Wooohooooo congratulations on your Leaderboard placement! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
This was an amazing delightful piece to have read, very heartfelt indeed, amazing voice and story telling here, well done for getting top story as well. Thank you for sharing this.
I love this! What a beautiful and heartfelt perspective. Thank you for sharing such a wonderful story, it definitely brightened my day.
This is GREAT!! I loved the line: just showed up for work like the absolute professional it is. You put so much into a fabulous day of sunshine and every day miracles that many don’t notice or take for granted.
Tim this gave me the biggest smile. I saw it earlier but because of where I was (internet wise, to be fair it’s my provider, they suck) it wouldn’t open. I absolutely love the entire meaning about this, a great motto for life…be happy with what we have and notice the beauty of it all. Congratulations
Back to say congratulations on your Top Story! 🎉💖🎊🎉💖🎊
I think this is truly amazing.
I loved this! I would high-five a squirrel if one would let me.
Tim, I absolutely loved this! Squirrels are such funny little critters. I have several who frequent my balcony, and in the morning, I love watching them scurry about with their autumn collections stuffed in their cheeks. Consider a high-five addition from me to the little guy. Congratulations on your top story, and best of luck to you in the challenge❣
Omfg i love this LMAO
I've read a few entries for this challenge and yours is one of my favourites! So beautifully positive!
This was a great piece to read first thing in the morning. It's going to be a good day 😀
So lively & inspirational! I love it!
Wonderfully optimistically happy. Best of luck
I must say, I really do like your title. 🐿️ That squirrel had some skills lol - you stopped and applauded 🤣 🐿️ the tree is treeing indeed. - learning how to ride a bike feels amazing once you've got it down, I would know. So congratulations to that kid. 🐿️ The smoke alarm 🤣 that thing has a way of making you feel worse about the situation - That guy needs to be rewarded. Maybe with a smile. 🐿️'in the best of all possible worlds' Hey! that sounds familiar 🤣👌🏾 - ONE 🤣🤣🤣🤣 I can't handle this poem. Clearly I am failing not to laugh. 🐿️ quite a lot of things had to have gone right. - spectacular 🤣🤣🤣🤣👌🏾oh my belly is not faring well with all this laughter. 🐿️ This was absolutely fantastic. Blown away. Had the best laugh I could ever have had. Life is good. Thank you for this fantastic piece, Tim 🤗 ❤️ 🖤 👏🏾 👌🏾