Simple things

A few weeks ago, I spontaneously and unilaterally I should add sheepishly, reversed a decision that the stunningly patient and mighty fine SML and I had made about bringing the Awesomes back to Connecticutistan for The Boy's mission farewell, which goes down tomorrow. With e-ticket receipts in hand, I told my wife what I'd done and with the grandson as an epic bargaining chip, all was well.

The weeks since then have been a blur, but as we debated what to do while they were here, we decided to keep it simple. There's a lot to said for simple when you've got a one year old, grandparents from both sides and a nearly nineteen year old who's itching to move on under one roof. So far, simple has paid off. Meals have focused on being at home and using the grill. We decided not to cram in a trip to Boston or New York City, again with the focus on simplicity. Instead, we went peach picking. Who knew that in the middle of the 'Stan that we would find acres of fruit (peaches, pears, and apples) trees, literally ripe for the picking. And the scenery was beautiful. As we came up over a hill and took in all the orchards, Our Lady of Awesome literally gasped, 'Dad, this is perfect.' It was indeed. And then this happened:

The Baby Awesome, or more appropriately Gigantor, was taking in a fresh peach right off the tree and loving it. It was, for us, a simple moment of joy.

We brought home a bit of that joy in the form of peaches that became the basis of the homemade peach ice cream. We've laughed a lot as grandparents shared memories of The Boy's childhood. We even played a few games tonight. And when I say 'we,' I'm included in the tally. 

By small and things, great things happen. That's been made evident to me today as we've focused on family and the simple things that bring us joy. Simple is good. Simple is the taste of a sweet peach. Simple is being surrounded by a family you can't imagine loving any more. Like I said, the dimple things are the good, no, the best things.