OOH LA LA! #67
raindrops, ice cream in a cone, green grass
Yesterday, sitting under the warm embrace of the sun and big buildings that hug Madison Square Park, I lifted my face toward the sky and smiled. A friend and I spent the afternoon weaving on small lap looms and playing with yarn in the park, and our conversation and time together in that beautiful place left me feeling filled up and energized, like the way I feel after a really good cup of coffee or a deep, restorative nap.
To me, this is the heart of OOH LA LA! Whatever it is that charges you up and gives you a spark of life and goodness and pleasure and wonder - these things and moments deserve your OOH LA LA! attention. It takes practice to train your mind and spirit to notice these sparks, but with practice, you’ll soon not stop seeing OOH LA LA!s everywhere!
I’d love to know what is charging you up these days, however big or small! Leave a comment or send a reply and let me know your OOH LA LA! sparks!
This week’s OOH LA LA! list includes: raindrops on the window, ice cream in a cone, and soft green grass
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My favorite way to experience the rain is from inside my apartment, where I can be warm and dry and watch the raindrops on the window. I love the sadness of raindrops and the slow choreography when they dance in unison, sliding down the glass. Even after the rain has stopped, the raindrops linger on the windows for a while, and from the cozy spot on my couch, each drop is a little mirror ball, shining the outside world right into my heart.
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What is it about ice cream in a cone that makes the ice cream taste better? Do you agree? For me, it is the experience of a handheld ice cream device, requiring just one hand instead of two when you eat ice cream from a bowl. I’m also a fan of the combined texture of the cold, wet ice cream and the dry, crunchy cone, the sweetness of the ice cream mixed with the warmth of the buttery pastry. I don’t eat gluten, so it is a rare treat for me to find a cone I can safely consume, and when I do, it is a full-bodied delight!
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This year is my 4th summer in NYC, and I know it’s true because of how excited I am when I get to sit in soft green grass. After a particularly exhausting work day spent looking at a screen in a cubicle, I desperately needed to get myself into nature, into what’s real and right and bigger than me. Instead of trudging my tired body home, I got off the train in the city and walked to the nearest park where I lay under a tree and rested my palms on the ground, the green grass blades reaching between my fingers. Here, I remember that I am not beyond love, as poet David Whyte has written. Here I exhale and breathe in the beauty of right now. I am here, the time is now.
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Thanks for reading!
As always, I’d love to know about your OOH LA LA! somethings.
Reply to this email with your own OOH LA LA! list or moment and I may share them in next issue! Feel free to include photos or art to accompany your description. I’d love to know your current wonders, pleasures, and delights!
XOXO,
LJ