tally the little moments

Tally the small moments of your life.

The time in France when you made cute soda cocktails with fizzy drinks and grenadine, how you stored them on the balcony overlooking the bakery because there was no fridge and it was autumn outside.

Tally the moment at the dinner table when you read that cookbook you had written in second grade, and it was so funny that your mom took off her glasses because she was laughing so hard and it was really nice to see her smile.

The time in Italy when they all had just arrived from the plane, jet lagged and sleepy, hungry and tired, bright eyed and hopeful, and they climbed into taxis with old gruff men who smelled of cigars and grease and drove through cobblestoned streets on the side of the road they weren’t used to, to find themselves four stories below what would be their home for the next few months.

The time when she was ten years old and they were all eating soup for lunch on a summer day and mom was at work so it was just papa and the kids and all of a sudden the willow tree fell down in the yard with a big thwack! They all heard it and ran outside and it had just fallen over just like that and they laughed and laughed and played in its branches, each one feeling like a feather.

Tally the moment when you saw the Eiffel tower for the first time, its beacons of light, its enormity, its beauty, or that time in Cape Cod when you all woke up early, piled into the car after a cup of coffee and stepped out onto the beach just as the sun kissed its waves. The sound of the ocean was deafening yet so calm, do you remember? Do you remember the sun and how you felt collecting all those rocks and shells, your toes in the sand, feeling wet, dry, sandy, repeat. How you found altars of sticks from other beach goers and wondered how much fun they had, wondered if they would remember today like this, wondered how many people felt this way right now.

Tally the moment you realized yellow was your favorite color. Tally the moment you realize a soul connection in a stranger, a really funny joke, when you eat the best version of your favorite meal, when everything works out, when you feel brimming with hope.

Tally these up and keep them in your pocket, for this is your roadmap to life. One joyous occurrence after another, knowing obstacles are meant to be dealt with and moved past, not dissected and evaluated. Each situation brings about an emotion that can be remembered as a lesson or a burden, and one of them is easier to carry.