Speaks for Itself – Photo: L. Weikel

Lighten Up

One thing I’ve always been able to count on my sons for is a well-timed poke to lighten up. Of all three, though, Karl was the raw and uncensored (believe me) comedian. He had an impeccable sense of comedic timing that came through for all of us time and again. Sometimes it perked his father or me up or helped his brothers see the absurdity of a situation. Usually he was being irreverent but at the same time scathingly truthful. He had a knack for finding the humor in the weirdest situations.

All of which leads me to a discovery I made this morning.

It could be said that perhaps I’d gotten up on the wrong side of the bed. That’s at least one perspective. The details are unimportant, but capturing the crankiness of the moments leading up to my discovery is essential.

I was foul. That much is indisputable. I looked at the state of the world on my phone and wanted to chuck it across the room. And when I brought my attention to my own little microcosm, I felt equally irritated. Well, maybe not equally, but I was definitely unhappy with a lot of little things all around me.

Cleaning the Catbox

I was actually in the perfect mood to clean out the catbox. In fact, that is an activity I was perfectly suited for in that moment. Sometimes cleaning up another creature’s crap can inspire you to clean up your own. Meh. Maybe. I tell myself that, though. And I do take pleasure out of leaving the litter pristine and ready for Tigger to jump in and re-christen it, which he invariably does within five minutes of it being cleaned out.

This time, though, there was a sign. Ha! A rainbow turdlet.

Pointed Message?

We’ll occasionally find rainbows arcing across our walls – often in intriguing places that almost seem to be aimed onto a specific object like a laser pointer.

I have to admit, though. This was the first time I’d ever found a rainbow in the catbox.

“Mom. Lighten up,” I could almost hear him saying. Just barely. And I had to admit, he’d managed it again. He made me laugh.

(T-115)