Simple Pleasures

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Last night college boy brought a few friends home after they saw a movie, had dinner, and fooled around long enough. They are sweet kids -- one he has known since kindergarten. They were standing in the kitchen talking when I went in to put away some dishes that had been air drying and start the dishwasher. It was my bedtime.

They were talking about food -- what else could be on their minds? The subject turned to cheese (of all things) and one boy commented that his grandpa used to eat cheese with mustard on crackers for snack every evening. He used a tone that showed he was simply amazed that is grandpa would enjoy this same food every evening. My husband commented that his grandpa, too, ate cheese with mustard and crackers every evening. "It's a generational thing, Chris," my husband said.

"When you get older, Chris," I explained, "you are content with simple pleasures." He looked at me, and I could tell by the look on his face that he realized that was it. That was why his grandpa was happy with his snack every evening. It was simple and simple things made him happy.

If there is one thing I hope to teach my children about this world, it's that we choose to be happy. We can choose to be content with simple pleasures, or always yearn for something better. Which will make me truly happy?


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