Skipping Stones

Today I worked until Noon.  The spasms in my back made it painful to sit too long at my desk.  My feet and hands were numb so I came home to lay down and rest my back.

At the moment I'm lounging on the loveseat on my patio.  Listening to the fountain in the middle of the pond splashing water.  That's a very comforting sound.  Occasionally a fish jumps out of the water.  I wonder why?  Is it just happy to be splashing about or was it leaping up to catch a juicy bug.  The pond is full of catfish and I guess I didn't realize catfish were jumpers.

And then a boy appeared at the pond. Now you know the problems I had earlier this Spring with children showing up at the pond, throwing rocks at the ducks.  Oh no I thought.

So I watched this little boy.  He sat down on the pebbles and began looking around.  He found just the right stone and then he tried to skip it on top the pond.  It didn't work.  I heard him mumbled.  He then selected another one.  He tried again.  No luck!

Now this little boy was persistent, he tried again and again.  And then I heard him exclaimed "I did it!"  He was so happy.  He tried again, nothing.  But that little boy attempted to skip stones for about 30 minutes.  And he was successful; some of the times.  And you could just feel his joy beaming my way.

And then he left.  He didn't bother the ducks. He was quiet as he selected a stone and tried and tried and tried.


It was a good reminder to me to not give up so easily, but to be persistent and relish in the small triumphs.  It was a lesson I needed today.  It was very special watching that little boy.  

It also reminded me of a poem I had to learn in Mrs. Porter's 7th grade English class.   Here's the section I remember of "The Quitter" by Robert Service:

It’s easy to cry that you’re beaten-and die;
It’s easy to crawfish and crawl;
But to fight and to fight when hope’s out of sight-
Why, that’s the best game of them all!
And though you come out of each grueling bout,
All broken and beaten and scarred,
Just have one more try-it’s dead easy to die,
It’s the keeping-on-living that’s hard.


Hope you have a super Wednesday!  Take a moment to be present; you might just be amazed !

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