Land of the Loss

 

"Marshall, Will, and Holly..."

You know the rest. 

"On a routine expedition." 

Land of the Lost. A Saturday morning staple. Another Sid and Marty Kroft brilliant creation that glued us to the television set as we devoured our Cocoa Puffs or Fruity Pebbles.  

As the calendar is slowly turning to 2022, I started to look back in my rearview mirror at the year that was.  So many people I know suffered a loss of some type this past year.  

Death. Divorce. Irreconcialble differences.  They are all losses.  And, they all hurt.  

I've often said, earlier on in our adult life, we celebrate births and marriages.  Later on, we tend to mourn the deaths and divorces.  

Here's the thing though...

We can't celebrate the gains, the wins, the loves without experiencing the losses. Without the loss in our life, we don't realize how good the gains feel.  

It's cliche, but true... "when one door closes, another opens." 

For those of us who have suffered a loss this year, I am truly sorry.  But fear not, because there's a lot still there that can bring a smile to our faces. 

We do live in the land of the loss...but not the land of the lost. 

We'll leave that to Marshall, Will, and Holly (and that weird little furry guy Cha-ka).  

 

Hit The Trees

 

Let me introduce my youngest son, Charlie. 

He is an amazing kid and has taught me so much about life. 

"Hit the trees." 

One rainy day long ago, Charlie and I took a walk downtown after dinner and we happened to wander under a tree that was full of rain-drenched leaves from top to bottom.  

Charlie decided it would be fun to jump as high as he could and hit the soaked leaves so they would rain down upon us.  

He did so and yes, the rain dumped on both our heads.

Charlie looked at me and for a moment was wondering if I was mad.  I laughed out loud and Charlie did as well. He said to me, "you laughed...I thought you might be upset because others probably would've been," and I told him why would I be upset at something so fun.  

From that day on, if Charlie or I were sad or down, we would remind each other to "hit the trees." 

Spontaneous laughter.  

Silliness.  

Fun.  

Living life in the moment. 

Don't take things too seriously. 

That's what life is all about.  

Doesn't matter how tall you are, you will always be able to hit at least one wet leaf. 

And...leave the umbrella at home.