Finding Contentment

I was telling a friend about some money concerns last week, and she told me that the years when her family had no money were her best childhood years.  It's like the people who refer to The Depression as the "good ol' days."  Priorities shift and you realize what is really important. 

I guess that got me thinking about the simple pleasures in my memories.  My best memories of our courtship  were the simple things...  eating chinese food while watching t.v., getting Slurpees, walking around downtown (that's where we met), and as I was driving through Denver on the way to a meeting this morning, I was reminded of one time when we had a picnic at Cheesman Park.  I got home this afternoon, and there was an air of lethargy in the house so I forced all my grumpy men into the car. We took some sandwiches and a blanket and went to Cheesman Park.  It was a warm January day but it is still January.  One child was shivering before we even had our food unwrapped, so we ate quickly.  Before we loaded back up in the car, we decided to take a little walk to the acropolis.  Pretty soon, we forgot all about being cold as we strolled through the park.  On our way along the path, we discovered a playground where BFJ had played as a child.  We sat on the see-saw, took some pictures - it was beautiful light.  Then I went over to the swing and swung.  And remembered what it was like to be a child.  And whooped on the way up, and my kids laughed, and swung, and my husband got to use the camera. 

And on the way back to the car, I remembered one of my best days as a child, when my dad was stationed at Fort Bragg, and my family went to the park by the officers' club and swung on the swings.  I remember the light, late afternoon like today's, and hope that this day will be in my kids' memories when they grow up.