One of the many joy of life is our sense of smell.  Another is a hot morning shower & shave.  This morning was such a delight as the ground is snow covered white with slight flakes still falling, nice and cold, just right for sleeping in (just a little) and then that morning ritual.  This morning’s tough decisions for that shower was whether to use the recently purchased (both on sale) either the “White Peach & Shea Butter” body wash or the “Cherry Seed Oil & Mint” version.  Putting this into perspective, I love anything with the promise of cherry in it, especially if its eatable, but at the same time, the creamy white peach has a lasting moisturizing base that stays after showering off the creamy soap bubbles.  Ah, life is full of such tough and wonderful choices each day.

I recall my teen days at home with my father taking delight in such everyday seemingly simple things, making life an adventure whether it was his rock collections or things to eat from the garden.  This particular Saturday Summer morning I was bringing my 16 year old girlfriend to the house for the first time.  As we came in the side door that led up several steps past the hanging coats you would open the door to a tiny short kitchen hallway.  I let her go first due to the tight fit as that inner door would be opened.  At that same moment, dad came through that door opening area, clad only in kachi shorts – no shirt, no shoes, just those shorts.  Now dad was a very easy going and open friendly kind of guy, the kind that says hello to everyone and would carry on a conversation with strangers at the drop of a hat.  To him, everyone was a friend, most of whom he just hadn’t met yet.  So you get the scene, sweet-16 girlfriend meeting dad for the first time face to face in this hallway at the open door, me on the steps slightly below and behind the developing scene, hoping to make a good impression with this “first visit” to the family home in little suburban Metuchen, NJ.  Dad speaks first in greeting the young stranger looking up into that hall at him and he says (and these are his exact words, still clear in my mind now over 50 years later), “Smell me!”

“Smell me?” What’s with that?  She takes it in stride, responding with some words I’m sure, but those I do not remember.  Dad had just come down from a late morning bath and had discovered one of my sisters’ scented bubble bath soaps. Dad delighted in scents, especially foods or in this case , a special soap.  Obviously he was enjoying the experience and had nobody yet to share it with as he came downstairs fresh from that bath, and she was the first encounter to share it with in his usual enthusiasm.  God bless her, she took it in stride and not only didn’t hold it against me, but grew to love that very special dad (as I tear up in writing this memory of him…) just as I did.  Maybe not so much in that particular moment, but overall I always did respect and love him, a love and admiration that grew over the years and continues many years after his passing in 1969.

So, for those of you who know me, if you were to ask how I came to be the man I am today, at least the better part of me I can attribute to that loving father who was always there with and for me (and my friends).  That is not to minimize my wonderful and strong mother’s influence, and between them, you have what you see in me today.  A grown man, going on 69 years of a life I can truly say has always been one full of adventure and blessed joy, taking a simple morning shower ritual to a higher level, and yes, choosing that “White Peach & Shea Butter” bath soap over the cherry one this particular cold white snowy morning, drinking in the fragrance, feeling the smoothness, as a very hot shower spray wakes up this body for another day of scent filled adventure.

I do pray that you too will take the time in your own busy day to “smell the roses” or maybe go out and buy at your local corner Rite Aid drug store some DIAL “Cherry Pit Oil & Mint” bath soap, and then come back and even if its afternoon by then, take a shower with it.  Then you too can greet someone with those surprising words from dad’s story: “Smell me!”

PS: Dad died of congestive heart failure at a much too young an age, 50.  Today, as evidenced by my own life saving heart transplant at that same age, suffering with that same heart condition, we have the miracle of transplantation to extend life.  As mom so wisely said in reply when someone asked her as I was waiting in the hospital for that new heart, “How can you deal with your oldest son lying here with a failing heart?”  She responded, “You forget, I’ve been through this before, but back in 1969 there were no alternatives.  Now there is.”

Take away life lessons . . .

First, make a decision about being an organ donor, tell your family about that decision and register that decision on your driver’s license.  You’ll never know how many lives you might save when you no longer need them.

Second, look for and enjoy those everyday simple joys of life.  They are there for all of us every day, no matter what stage of life you may be in.  You only have to be open to those daily blessings, or as I say, those “free cookies” in life that we “Cookie Monsters” find and celebrate in story telling as I’ve just done here.

"My wonderful dad"

But the really amazing parts to me are the unbelievable planet earth scenes that God created, and that I do know is reality and not photo trickery, even though I can’t imagine how He did that either…  but I am a believer.

So sit back and put yourself inside these amazing scenes and just relax (if you can given the dangers and great close-up recordings) and enjoy the moments . . .

or you can just click here: Whale rescue and a huge “Thank you!”

So, what do you think?  Yes, all creatures have some form of intelligence, but in this case (as in the gorilla/human interaction experience show in an earlier post here),  is this truly a whale knowing what his rescuers are trying to do for him and in the end, really showing signs of gratitude?  Was this whale showing a celebration of that new found freedom, and if so, was he doing it specifically to entertain his rescuers?  We know so little and with research with dolphins as another example, along with chance encounters like this one, we really do have to give that some thought.

I recently heard of a dolphin trainer who in “teaching” a young dolphin to follow hand signals, was using fish as a food treat to reward the dolphin for doing it right.   When the dolphins didn’t follow commands correctly, the instructor would step back from the pool and disengage in the interaction for a minute or so, giving the youngster a “dolphin time-out” as it were for its misbehavior.  Some of the reward fish were too large, so she cut them into three parts which the dolphin ate eagerly.  Except for the spiny fin part.  The instructor discovered that if she trimmed off that spiny fin the dolphin eagerly ate that part too.  When she inadvertently missed one and gave the dolphin a spiny fish piece, the dolphin spit it back at her and then backed up across the pool and waited, seemingly giving the instructor a “time-out” – could this really be happening?  The dolphin learning to punish the instructor from what she had done to it?  Over the course of several days, she tried it again and again, and sure enough, each time the dolphin repeated “the lesson” with the same “time-out” behavior.

So, what do you think about animal intelligence in light of these and so many other stories we all have heard or even experienced with your own pets, dogs and cats as an example in your home?

Just something to think about for your day today.  Have yourself another good one!

Sandy Cove sunset New Year's Eve 2011

The environment is always so amazing and to support this statement let me share the performance we saw by Jamey Turner who plays “the glass harp” – something you will better understand when you see him in action in this video (which is exactly his performance as we saw there):

This was by no means the only show, with Michael Faircloth (pianist), Paul Pitts (tenor) and comedian, Daren Streblow filling out the entertainer list.  Thrilled with the beautiful music, sides hurting from the laughter of both the musicians interplay and then this comedian, it was a night to remember and a great way to welcome 2012 in this prayerful setting of well over 300 Christians – mostly couples – joining in for fabulous food and fellowship.  The event has been going on for some 26 years with many couples coming back every year.

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year from Sandy Cove, MD

We wish you all a very Happy New Year and hope you find this year filled with many blessings and joy.

Hang on and come with me for the “coaster” ride of a lifetime:

and if you liked that, in a different venue here’s another:

Now wasn’t that a wonderful festive feeling?  Thanks for sharing it with me here.  Now go and share your own love with family and friends and strangers this holiday season.  That’s what I just did here for you!

The  Cab Ride

I arrived at the address and honked the horn.  After waiting a few minutes I walked to the  door and knocked.. ‘Just a minute’, answered a  frail, elderly voice. I could hear something  being dragged across the floor.

After  a long pause, the door opened. A small woman in  her 90′s stood before me. She was wearing a  print dress and a pillbox hat with a veil pinned  on it, like somebody out of a 1940′s  movie.   By her side was a small nylon  suitcase. The apartment looked as if no one had  lived in it for years. All the furniture was  covered with sheets.   There were no  clocks on the walls, no knickknacks or utensils  on the counters. In the corner was a cardboard  box filled with photos and  glassware.

‘Would you carry my bag  out to the car?’ she said. I took the suitcase to the cab, then returned to assist the  woman.   She took my arm and we walked slowly toward the curb.   She kept  thanking me for my kindness. ‘It’s nothing’, I  told her.. ‘I just try to treat my passengers  the way I would want my mother to be treated.’   ’Oh, you’re such a good  boy,’ she said.

When we got in the cab, she gave me an address and then asked, ‘Could you drive  through downtown?’   ’It’s not the shortest way,’ I answered  quickly..   ’Oh, I don’t mind,’ she  said. ‘I’m in no hurry. I’m on my way to a hospice.’   I looked in the rear-view  mirror. Her eyes were glistening. ‘I don’t have any family left,’ she continued in a soft  voice.. ‘The doctor says I don’t have very  long.’

I quietly reached over and shut off the  meter.   ’What route would you like me  to take?’ I asked.

For the next two  hours, we drove through the city. She showed me the building where she had once worked as an  elevator operator.   We drove through the neighborhood where she and her husband had lived  when they were newlyweds She had me pull up in  front of a furniture warehouse that had once  been a ballroom where she had gone dancing as a  girl.   Sometimes she’d ask me to slow in front of a particular building or corner and  would sit staring into the darkness, saying  nothing.

As the first hint of sun was  creasing the horizon, she suddenly said, ‘I’m  tired. Let’s go now’.   We drove in silence to the address she had given me. It was a low building, like a small convalescent home,  with a driveway that passed under a  portico.   Two orderlies came out to the cab as soon as we pulled up. They were solicitous and intent, watching her every move.  They must have been expecting her.   I opened the trunk and took the small suitcase to  the door. The woman was already seated in a wheelchair.

‘How much do I owe you?’  She asked, reaching into her purse.   ’Nothing,’ I  said   ’You have to make a living,’ she  answered.   ’There are other  passengers,’ I responded.

Almost  without thinking, I bent and gave her a hug. She  held onto me tightly.   ’You gave an  old woman a little moment of joy,’ she  said. ’Thank you.’

I squeezed her  hand, and then walked into the dim morning  light.. Behind me, a door shut. It was the sound  of the closing of a life..

I didn’t pick up any more passengers that shift. I drove aimlessly lost in thought. For the rest of that day, I could hardly talk. What if that woman had gotten an angry driver, or one who was impatient to end his shift? What if I had refused to take the run, or had honked once, then driven away?

On a quick review, I don’t think that I have done anything more important in my life.   We’re conditioned to think that our lives revolve around great moments.   But great  moments often catch us unaware-beautifully  wrapped in what others may consider a small  one.

PEOPLE MAY NOT REMEMBER EXACTLY  WHAT YOU DID, OR WHAT YOU SAID ~BUT~THEY WILL  ALWAYS REMEMBER HOW YOU MADE THEM  FEEL.

You won’t get any big surprise in 10 days if you send this to ten people. But, you might help make the world a little kinder and more compassionate by sending it on and  reminding us that often it is the random acts of  kindness that most benefit all of  us.

Thank you, my  friend, for sharing a tear with me over such a beautiful story of human compassion and kindness . . .

PS: Since posting this I Googled its title to see if credit should be given to a source and came across this author/speaker, Kent Nerburn, who seems to be its source.  To learn more about Kent, <– just click on his name here.

What got me to buy it?  Read the following and see if it strikes your fancy (of course, on Amazon.com I also read the sample pages and that made the difference)…