Do Good

Sometimes I crave vanilla milkshakes. Other times I just want a big ol' pile of french fries with ranch dressing.

Sometimes I crave coffee.

Probably because I'm freaking addicted.

But today I craved something completely bizarre:

Beauty.

Without regurgitating everything I've absorbed in the last month, I think my reasons are obvious (and probably the same as yours).

So after Will and I got kicked out of the pediatric dentist this afternoon (a story for another time, really), and I was pulling two incredibly cranky children out of the car, our elderly next door neighbor shuffled out of her house with cravings of her own: interaction with my kids. I let Will chat with her (okay, he stared at her blankly) while I stared at the windows of my car, now smeared with ice cream splatters and finger prints--my "holy crap I can't believe we got booted from the dentist" consolation prize--and I thought to myself, "I don't think I could possibly be more irritated in this moment."

We entertained the neighbor for thirty more seconds and I stormed into the house.

For the next half hour we decompressed.

And just so you know, that involved ScoobyDoo (for the kids) and Halloween candy (for me, duh).

Then, epiphany. I was tired of all the ugly--all of it, from Hurricane Sandy to the kids' dentist and all of the events in between.

I'm in the last week of that class I am taking, where making art every day is required (and welcomed by my soul).

I looked at Will and I said, "Let's. Make. Art."

Crayons, watercolors, and glitter were pulled out. We brushed and glued and wrote and sprinkled and dusted.

Then we admired.

And we delivered our beauty

to our neighbor.

If good begets good, let's all spend a little more time focusing on what feels amazing.

Do love. Be beautiful.