It's the little things

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It's the little things that make your life full and complete. Realizing this can change your life. It isn't how much money you have, the car you drive, the career you choose or even the love of your life that completes you. It’s finding joy, real pleasure in the simple things in life that make you whole.

For family fun in the past our favorite activity was camping, when ever and wherever we could. We camped in Prescott, Payson, the rim of the Grand Canyon and Rocky Point, Mexico. Our family loves the outdoors.

Costa Rica was a natural fit for us. Life here is like camping. We don’t always have electricity or running water. Sometimes they both go out on the same day. Yesterday was a day like that. At some point in the afternoon Bill used the faucet and realized the water was out. No big deal as we’ve learned when we finish a milk jug to rinse it and fill it with water, for just such an occasion. As dinner time approached the water was back on so we weren’t inconvenienced.

While watching television together after dinner, the power went out. Usually, we just sit tight and wait a minute or two until the power is restored. This didn’t feel like one of the normal power outages. As soon as it went off Bill and I calmly went for the flashlight and candles. Bear is afraid of the dark.

What impressed me about this outage was our reaction. Six months ago we would’ve all been frustrated at missing a chunk of our TV show and not being able to follow the plot. We look forward to Law and Order: SVU nights. No one voiced any frustration in our house this time. Instead of being angry at missing our show we all went out on the back porch, sat in our string chairs and watched fireflies. I listened as Bill commented on how many more fireflies were visible with all the lights out. Callista pointed out how cool it was watching the car lights as they came over the top of a distant mountain and drove down out of sight.

The power came back on after 15 minutes or so and we went back in to watch our show. Once we were all settled and comfortable it went out again. We all laughed as we heard our neighbor yell in frustration. This time we opened the living room curtains and watched the fireflies on our front porch. We saw hundreds. Fireflies are new phenomenon to us former desert dwellers.

The evening’s events got me thinking about how much we had really changed or grown in the short time we’ve lived here. It’s difficult to explain in words how all the little things here have helped us becoming happier people. How can sipping a cup of coffee while watching wild toucans in your back yard not change a person?

The pics on this blog are just a few of the things that have helped us change and grow. Watching the birth of a butterfly, impromptu picnics with friends, amazing wildlife and of course spectacular sunsets.

PURA VIDA!
Jen, Bill, Callista and Bear

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Photos

Stunning beauty
Heart breaking to know it'll only live for three more days. That's nature.

Picnic with friends
Spur of the moment picnic in the rain forest with friends. This pic was taken at 1pm. Daylight hardly reaches the ground here as the jungle is so dense.

Tucans at Sunrise
You never know what you'll see in our backyard. It's difficult to see but trust me, he's there!

Independence day sunset
During the rainy season sunsets are a real treat.

Blue Morpho Pupa
Callista bought me a pupa for Mother's Day. Best present I've ever gotten.

Birth of a Blue Morpho Butterfly
This is minutes after it came out of the pupa

First flight
He wasn't ready but the wind blew him off the clothes line.

Little monkey
Our friends son climbing a tree while we picnicked in the bosque.

Searching for a lost shoe
Bill and friend, Solange, searching unsuccessfully for shoe that got sucked off by the mud.