(Jo Dufford Pooh Cards for Daily Messages)

Dear Reader:

I love days, like the one Piglet describes in the title photo…and yesterday was one of them. The cold weather prompted me to make spaghetti…there’s just something so comforting and soothing about hot pasta on a cold night…especially when I have a fire going.

As Honey and I were talking on the phone (celebrating her birthday) yesterday afternoon…Luke stopped by. He had fixed the Clemson sign on the oak tree that blew down and was damaged by a recent wind storm. He just picked it up yesterday…nowadays I wonder how I ever managed to make it without Luke and Chelsey across the street from me?

So I piled the spaghetti on two plates with garlic rolls and Parmesan cheese. Chelsey is having to travel more now and putting in long hours…I thought it would be nice to come home to a hot meal…and just let them know how much their presence is appreciated by all the neighbors. They are so giving!

So when I saw this little short story that was published on KindSpring…Small Acts that Change the World I knew I was getting a God Wink since Honey kept Vietnamese Pot-Belly hogs for many years and loved them like one of the family….“Sharing a Smile” is about a pig that brought a smile to someone in distress. It is an example of how we can change the world with kindness… even when we don’t set out to do it.  (Written by NoonesNME)

“While stuck in traffic, I noticed the woman in the vehicle next to me was crying. Alone in her vehicle, she wiped her tears, and struggled to catch her breath. I didn’t mean to stare, but I

could hardly look away. As she pulled ahead of me, I could still see her crying for quite a few minutes.

When it was my turn to drive up beside her, I managed to get her attention by waving a little stuffed pig I happen to carry in my car. I tilted the pig’s head from side to side and gestured with my fingers over my biggest smile for her to do the same. She wiped her tears, nodded, smiled, and gave me a big thumbs up! At that moment, traffic cleared up and we drove off.

It was quite emotional, and even recalling it stirs up some mixed feelings. I’m glad I got to see the silver lining behind the turmoil she was experiencing, even if it was for a few seconds. I’m grateful to have been a part of that.”

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So until tomorrow…like Father Timothy said each day…”Lord, Make me a blessing to someone today.”

“Today is my favorite day”  Winnie the Pooh

Like so many gardeners and flower lovers…we are all holding our breath and saying a prayer that the below freezing temperatures last night and tonight will not kill many blooms…so many trees and buds are ready to pop at any moment. So I took pictures yesterday in the damp grayness…until suddenly the sun appeared later in the afternoon.

I took two pictures of the Bradford Pear…the first one on the left had dark forbidding skies behind it…but a minute later…the sun burst through and lit the pear tree up like a smile!

Nowadays I am cutting azalea sprigs to bring inside….

Mollie and some of the other Lowcountry BeautyCounter representatives met with the Director of Community Outreach for Joe Cunningham. Their mission and voices resonated with pleas for better surveillance of harmful products that go into children, men and women’s cleaning and beauty products. No one should have to worry about harmful ingredients in everyday cleaning products.