Skip to main content

A tinge of happiness

  It happened without warning, which I imagine is how it usually does. He came into my cubicle, and without much pretense: smiled, asked me how I was, told me to have a good rest of the day, and walked out.
  I didn't really recognize it. He walked in later, smiled, touched my shoulder, heaved a sigh of slight exhaustion, tilted his head, and gave me that he look he gives me. Ya know, the one that says all he can't say because he can't figure out why he likes me so much...and then walked out.
  I usually see him down the hall. I have the ability to now recognize him anywhere. The way his shirts cling to his thick arms, the way his pants bunch at his shoes cause they are too long and he wouldn't take them back when I told him it would be a good idea. The way his arms are covered in those silly paper sleeves. It is like they are covering a secret only I know. The way his gait shows such determination and focus. I can recognize all of it. It's the small things.
  Wanna know my favorite part? When he doesn't notice me back. If he spots me down the hall or walking toward him, he smiles and sometimes whispers a comment laced with secret snark. Sure, I like those moments. But my favorite ones are those in which he can't see me. I get to witness his pure determination. I get to witness his passion. I get to witness his desire to succeed. And it is so beautiful.
  Perhaps it has been all of these things that caused me to feel it. The saddest part is that I didn't even realize it until I was on my way home. I felt happy. I thought back to our short encounters today, and I smiled. I felt happiness for the first time. Then I became elated! Pathetic? If you only knew what this told me. It told me I was healing. It told me that the betrayal I felt from the past was starting to slowly vanish. It gave me hope. It gives me hope.
  I am a broken glass vessel that is becoming something that can one day hold happiness and love again. I am far from where I should be, but I am on my way. And, God has truly blessed me with a person who not only doesn't rush but also fully supports.
  I felt a tinge of happiness today. Unexpectedly. But that's how it usually comes; isn't it?

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Beneath the Weeping Willow

  "The willow submits to the wind and prospers until one day it is many willows—a wall against the wind. This is the willow's purpose." —  Frank Herbert, Dune   Time, although a very evasive concept, is in each moment a gift. And most often, I don't stop to look back at the road I have traveled on. Even more so, the road Justin and I have travelled together. But today it is warranted. Today marks 9 years as husband and wife, and 9 years of truly some amazing and adverse moments. We have lost the most cherished and birthed the most loved all the while interwoven with each other.    I will be the first to admit that our day to day appears to some: mundane. However, inside the ordinary he and I together have understood the profundity of love. It is brash and loud, but it is also cautious and quiet.  "Love is a many splendored thing."  It is the true basis of community, and I am proud of the community we have built.   The  willow  is the t...

Being his girlfriend

"Are you happy being my girlfriend?" He asks. In all seriousness. In all honesty. He asks. Never once have I been asked such a damned difficult question. Never once have I been asked that slight simple question. Never once have I been asked THAT question.   Immediately, my head goes a thousand different directions. I want to give him the most honest answer. But lately I feel as though I am trying to quantity my happiness. Yes. I. Am. Happy. But what is happiness? Am I? Can I honestly say that I am happy? I don't know.   Before I make an ass out of myself, I must say this: not one time in the history of Aly and men has she ever felt like her significant other was shelter. You know that line from Finding Nemo where Dory says to Marlin, "When I look at you, I remember. When I look at you, I am home." That's the way I feel when I am in his arms. Home. Perhaps it best not to tell him such a bold thought, but it's true.   Back to this question. Am I happy b...

Seconds

  I always tried, growing up, to see if I felt different in certain moments of time. Such as when the clock strikes midnight on my birthday or when it strikes midnight bringing in a new year. Does that one second really feel different? No. Not usually. And that one second isn't truly that significant. But seconds can be significant. In fact, in one second our lives can be completely different.   For the last few months, 6 perhaps, there has been more overwhelming hatred for 2016. It has proven to be a very hard year. I have seen the death of my grandmother, the death of others dear to my friends, rape and murder scattered throughout this world like salt on a wound, natural disasters leaving thousands dead, and the tipping point of a nation that can't seem to get it right.   And as I wax nostalgic, I cringe at the bad, shake my head at the dumbfounded, but then remind myself to embrace and celebrate the good. Because in the midst of all the not good...there is good. The...