Pursuit of happiness

Sorry about standing you guys up 4 days in a row. My husband generously shared his virus with me so I was coughing and hacking up half my lung.
 I took a turn for the better thanks to modern medicine and am feeling as perky as ever which is in perfect congruence with this post.

After Monday's grump fest ,thankfully today I'll be talking about the things that make my heart smile:

1. Fellow special needs parents - I've meet so many moms ( and a few dads) who have kids with autism/asperger's/down's/CMD/Etc. Some of them in the flesh and some of them online. Most of these parents share the same philosophies as me, which obviously makes conversations flow  easier and organically. A minority of them heavily disagree with my schools of thought and that's totally acceptable in itself. But every single one of them has this huge aura around them. They have this emanation of fierce love and pride in their child. They're all vulnerable and sensitive and rubbed a little raw from wearing their hearts on their sleeves. They work tirelessly and often without perceivable rewards and can never get enough sleep. You can break them with one cruel word and watch them miraculously build themselves up in front of you, because they don't have the luxury of taking a day off. These parents are my kin and my tribe and inspirational even in all their flaws and failures. 
2. Children - all kids are goofballs at heart. Even the quiet ones who scurry away when you talk to them and especially those who think they are too cool to share airspace with you. You just have to catch them at that one magical second when they're about to smile or when they let their guard down enough to chuckle at a joke. They love to laugh and make us laugh too. The joy that a silly kid brings you is simply incomparable. And my 2 kids have their own brand of humor that never fails to make me laugh.
3. Coffee - sometimes I'll be walking past a line of stores and that smell of fresh coffee will hit me and man, I instantly feel my spirits rising. My inner child nudges me with memories of all the tumblers ( indian cups) of coffee my mom brewed me and my subconscious reinforces the coffee = mother's love connection. I walk by the stores feeling happy and rejuvenated even though I haven't had a single sip.
4. Rain - This is an iffy one. Where I live ( and I suspect in most parts of the world), its common practice to hate rain and wish for endless days of sunshine and blue skies. Well, not me. I grew up in India where we got four beautiful months of cool showers right after a scorching summer. Rain meant new life, a new school year and a fresh start. Cloudy days still make me downright giddy because I can smell the rain in the air and hope for new, better things.
5. Sisterhood - I love when women stand up for each other. Look out for each other. Fight for each other. Strong, women both vocal and virtual reaffirm my belief in the future - for myself and my daughter and also my son.
6.  Writing- Writing liberates me to live larger than my person, to come meet each one of you and hopefully connect with you in a way that I possibly couldn't in person. I'm glad I'm finally writing more because this is something that comes from my soul. 

There's many more things that make me happy -like how my parents (both birth and in laws) are so involved and invested in my life. Like the sound of my husband's soothing voice or the way my sister and I converse with our own shorthand of phrases and half expressed thoughts. How my friends text me and understand if don't respond right away. 

There's little bubbles of joy waiting around for us to discover and pop. Simple, boring, everyday joys. Like that cup of coffee with its perfect crown of foam waiting for me. And now I must go.