The little moments

 Over Two months have passed since I hung up my barista apron, and those two months have been full of change, joy, discovery, learning, and growth. Those elements are still occurring, but perhaps slowing a little, allowing me to now take what those have been and process them more.
   As I was out on a run yesterday, I was pondering coffee stories I had not yet shared. I didn't have one sticking out at me as they have in the past, though there are still a plethora of them yet unveiled.
But as I brewed the coffee at work yesterday, my coworker grabbed a cup,  passed by my desk, lifted his cup, and said "Still serving up smiles one cup at a time " .  And his saying that prompted the thought process.
  It's the little things that matter, that bring the smiles.  It's not about my standing behind a counter, passing out a latte. It's not about my sitting at a desk, answering runners' questions about the race. It's not about me at all, really. It's about the little elements that occur in a day's time that bring the smiles. The more one takes time to look for them, the more joy that can be found. The little things are what are filling my thankful journal.
It's a fresh pot of coffee.
   It's a smile shared across the table understood only between two people.
It's a favorite pen that writes just the right way.
    It's a best friend who is always there and allows me to share every single detail of my day or my feelings.
    It's getting a card in the mail.
         It's laughing so hard tears come out.
   It's having a long, hard cry because my heart hurts but then being able to pick up and smile and move forward.
     The smiles are found in the little moments that add up each day.
Smiles are found in ...
  My daughter's smile, excited to turn 12 this week.
       My son's snuggles, which I know will only last a little longer.
    A real conversation, one with all barriers down and all trust in place.
 A sweaty 5 mile run, tallying the miles towards my 100 mile goal for the month.
      Knocking out a project that has been challenging.

This was totally not the blog post I set out to write today, but the words just came and sometimes you just gotta go with it.  Embracing the little moments is becoming a theme for me, I guess :)
  Summer is floating away all too quickly, and I am definitely soaking it in, one day at a time, and embracing the little moments.