giving thanks for small blessings...

This afternoon I had one of those "small" blessings that makes living in a small community so sweet. Yesterday, when I went to pay for groceries, when I opened my wallet, my ATM card was gone. Being a gentleman of a certain age, I always replace this card in the same place. But yesterday it was gone. I searched the car, my backpack, my shopping bags and other hiding places in my wallet, but alas: it was no where to be found. NOTE: at my retirement party, I was given a wallet with a clip-on chain - much like you would find upon a motorcycle aficionado - and that has helped. With the wallet. Apparently, I now need a chain for my ATM card, as well.

I got the groceries paid with another card only to conduct one more car search. A house search, too. "I last had that damn thing buying fresh tomatoes from the vegetable stand down the road," I said out loud. So, after worship (we're doing church these days at Riverside in NYC via the Internet) - I headed down to Jaeschke's. As I bought two ears of fresh native corn, I asked the cashier: "You don't happen to have a bank card that I left here while buying tomatoes on Friday, do you?" She broke into a big smile, touched my hand and said, "Yes, hun, wait just a sec. I couldn't catch up to you Friday. Sometimes we get so busy I am just checking people out; and by the time I realized the card was still here, you were gone." She opened the register and said, "James, right? Here you go." I thanked her profusely and she gave me a hug. "No problem, hun, no problem."

When I got home, I dealt with some weeds and did some pruning of wild ass branches in the back yard. All the while I was thinking, "There are so many blessings to keeping life small." In about an hour I'll grill that native corn - and some swordfish grilled atop fresh limes, too - and give thanks to God.