There is so much to be taken for granted in life, and it is often the case that we remember to appreciate things when they are missing. When I woke up today, I happened to think about how good it is to simply feel good and to feel hunger. As I walked out the door I noticed the plants all looking robust after a long stretch without rain – they even looked happy. Experience tells me that when life throws us a curve, when there is difficulty with physical or emotional well-being, when relationships falter or work becomes particularly stressful, it is difficult to think about anything else. In the old classic story, “Heidi,” there is a scene where Heidi is sitting on the mountainside with her elder doctor friend. Heidi is verbalizing her joy in the beauty all around. The doctor, who is mourning the death of his daughter, observes that because of his grief he is even sad that he can’t appreciate the beauty that Heidi sees. What to do then? Heidi ponders a bit and then shares how her old, blind grand-mama is helped by Heidi reading her the lines of a favorite hymn, which she then recites from memory. The doctor realizes that in a small way, Heidi’s words lift a bit of the weight from his shoulders. I neither recognized nor remember the lines of that hymn. But I am reminded of the actor, Martin Sheen, singing an old hymn on Prairie Home Companion, “Through all the tumult and the strife, I hear that music ringing … If love is Lord of heaven and earth, how can I keep from singing?” Sometimes it is the little things that lift my spirits.