Grateful

I climbed this huge atrium staircase at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia one day to look at this awhile. It was children's art hung on "clotheslines." There were two huge displays like this. They were so happy, spirited, and hopeful. Like laundry hung out on the line on a perfect sunny day; for laundry on a clothesline is full of hope. You have worked to clean these clothes, and now you are trusting the sun, and a breeze, to gently take care of your clothes so you can wear them. Hope, faith, trust.

How nice that creativity lives on even as children are unwell and parents are stressed. Letting anxious thoughts work there way out through painting or drawing; choosing colors; expressing through both during challenging times. This is where I have been, this is where I am, this is where I want to go; there are perspective stories in this art collective.

It is just so pretty, and huge, up on the atrium wall. A group of small individual things making a different and lovely group impact. Like people.

I then went back down the stairs and into the security office to have my parking validated. I had asked the guard how he was today... a little small talk. But he did not answer “small.”

"Grateful," he said.

Oh!
That Is such a beautiful word, isn't it?

I had to respond bigger.
Do you know that beautiful song, “Grateful” ? I asked back.

"Oh, yes. Who sings that?” he asked, and our brains hummed together while my parking ticket was stamped. I believe we were both thinking of two different grateful songs, and we did not find the answer, and it did not matter. It did not matter that we had different grateful songs, it just mattered that we both had them. We locked eyes and smiled.


The moment in the security office felt like the artwork.
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