The Secret of Life

/ Jodi

The Secret of Life.

Do you ever think….
“What’s it all about?”
Life – that is…
Why are we here?
What is our purpose?

My BFF, Jill, and I have asked each other this so many times throughout the almost 30  years of our friendship, I couldn’t even count the number.

It’s become a bit of a joke, but also a bit of a reminder too.

When we first met, we were young “stay at home moms.”  And (sadly), those ones who judged working moms as lesser than we who cared for our children and homes and served on the PTA and were the best-ever “homeroom moms” who created the field day obstacle course that all other homeroom moms envied.

Sigh….

We now mock, but also guiltily regret, our young naive selves, as we have become those crazy workaholic successful business women we once despised.  And we both have the absolutely most amazing daughters (mine is a daughter-in-law, but I love her like a daughter) who are beautiful, successful working women and amazing, loving mothers.

And you know what?  No judging…  No mocking…

Life is too short for all of that!

We all do what is right for each of us.
And our children.
And our families.
Period.

And what have I learned along the way?

The secret of life is finding the JOY in the ordinary!

There are so many moments in the ordinary days of living that bring us joy…
that bring us contentment…
that make the ordinary – well – EXTRAordinary.

Like marriage.

Hubby and I have been married for 35 years!  And you know what?  I am proud of that!

I was 19 years old and he was 23 when we married.  I had no idea what life was all about.

But that same cute Hubby was on a business trip this past week and away for three nights.

He rarely travels.

In fact, I have been the one to travel many, many more times for work than him as the years have passed.

And though I was not “afraid of the dark” and the “bogey man” like I was when I was young and he went away (and that same wonderful best friend and her hubby and family actually stayed at my house with me when same hubby went away), it just wasn’t “right” without him here.

Sometimes an evening goes by with barely 50 words spoken between us.  But we are together.  He is here, and I am here, and we are together.

And sometimes that is enough.

I now wonder why we all cannot see, and wish I could share with so many who strive for and desire so much more and cannot find it, that it is okay.  In fact… it is more than okay.  It is the secret of life….

The secret of a joy-filled life….

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the “ordinary.”  The ordinary is a blessing.

The secret of life?
Finding joy in the ordinary!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

PS  My same sweet, wonderful daughter-in-law painted the gorgeous sign pictured here  that is available in our McKinneyX2Designs Etsy Shop.  She gets it!  And I am so proud of her I could burst!  

And when Hubby came home from his business trip Friday afternoon, what did he find?

… a perfectly content wife/mom/grandma/business woman (with a nasty Spring head cold and not looking her best – to say the least) sound asleep with the most beautiful  granddaughter on her chest and a half-read book.  That is joy.  That is ordinary.  That is joy in the ordinary.

 

78 thoughts on “The Secret of Life”

  10. Too often we spend time looking for the extraordinary when there are so many wonderful ordinary, everyday things happening right in front of us. We only need to stop looking so hard & just focus on what us right in front of us💛

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  11. Great 👍 and loved your calm and so soothing picture with the little angel Jodi. Yes I absolutely agree wholeheartedly with your words cause today at this juncture it is so nice to relax and enjoy life and not get into the humdrum of life. 👌👌👌👌👌

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  12. Lovely Post Jodi. So many people are looking for happiness in life outside of themselves when, in fact, the most important place to look is within. Once you are content within, then you can adapt so easily and appreciate so much more of what is outside.

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  16. blockquote, div.yahoo_quoted { margin-left: 0 !important; border-left:1px #715FFA solid !important; padding-left:1ex !important; background-color:white !important; } I love this!  I also needed to hear some of those words!  Like not saying more than 50 words but being together.  You have a way with words.  I love the picture of you and Clara!  I hope you are feeling better today!   I love you! Have a wonderfully ordinary day!

    Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPad

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  23. The older I get, the more I enjoy the ordinary! 😊🌈💜 Especially when life throws me a curveball! 😃 Congrats on 35 years of marriage, Jodi! 💕 My hubby will celebrate 33 years in May! And it IS something to be proud of!! 👍💍

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  26. That photo at the end says it all! Moments like those are exactly what makes life joyful! Isn’t it funny how, when we were young, we were trying so hard to live the lives we thought we were supposed to live, hoping against hope that we were “good enough” (that’s where the judgement of others came in, because we were still insecure in our own choices). And although there were certainly good times in those years, we didn’t recognize or appreciate the joy in the small moments? Aging does teach us a thing or two, doesn’t it?

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    • Oh Ann – thank you – I almost didn’t want to post that photo as it is such an unattractive shot of me that hubby caught – lol – but the warmth and love it evokes in my heart outweighed my vanity of double chins. To have your grandchild fall asleep on your chest with your hearts beating together and then fall asleep and dream of all the beautiful wonderful things ahead. Well – there is just nothing like it…. ❤ And yes – why do we have to get old before we get wise enough to realize such important things like judging and joy and insecurity. In a way – it is a beauty of life to be granted it when our own beauty fades. We realize that isn't so important at all.

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  27. Beautiful post Jodi! Agreed! I remember shortly after our wedding – which was 20 years ago – and having a home cooked meal in our little apt. And I thought to myself this is what life is about – not the big wedding that goes by in a blip – but the little moments, like dinner together. As you say it’s the ordinary moments – like now, the 5 of us around the dinner table. ❤

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  30. Pingback: Creative Inspiration in Food, Watercolor, Photography, Writing and Life in Between.

  31. What a beautiful post, Jodi. That photo…that one moment in time…is the best example of life as it should be. Holding those who we love the most in a peaceful loving way. It really doesn’t get much better than that. God Bless.

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    • Thank you George! You so totally get it! And I am so glad I have such love in my life as this little sweetheart and her parents and her uncle and soon-to-be aunt and her pappy! ❤ My heart could just burst ❤

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