document kindness, life's selfless acts, beautiful moments and gentle amusements and encourage others to do the same

lately i’ve been listening to my ipod on the way to and from work. i love having music going straight into my head.. it’s the soundtrack to my life as i walk along. or sit and gaze.

a couple days ago on the way home, i was sitting on the bus just idly staring out at the people walking (we were stopped at a light) and someone looked back at me at the same time. he stuck his tounge out, smiled, and kept walking. it made me smile because i’d been caught people watching! haha

the bravery of a 15 year old undergoing a procedure i couldn’t imagine doing myself, at my age. he tried very hard to be strong.. and it was worth it in the end. he passed! on to the next step for him :)

one of the cardiac rehab patients that i saw yesterday made me smile repeatedly throughout the assessment. i gave a questionnaire because his vision is poor and so i read it aloud to him. for each question that he agreed with or said yes to, his response was “without a shadow of doubt”. and he said it in the cutest way!!

so i dont know if anyone who reads this will agree with me, but i just realized that “Grey Sky Morning” is acutally a pretty depressing song. i’ve sung along happily never actually absorbing the words for a good couple of years now. this song came on from shuffle i thought how romantic david gray’s voice is.. i looked up the lyrics to that song because i realized hey, i have no idea what hes really talking about.

imagine my surprise that hes heartbroken!!! wow.. how wrong i could be about a song..

(i have no idea if this fits under the category of “gentle amusements” because i dont find it amusing, but make of it what you will)

a friend of mine from university and i just had a long conversation online. i really enjoy chatting with her, and i look forward to seeing her again once i’m back on campus.

at the end of every time we talk (particularly since i’ve been here in Ireland) she thanks me for the chat or let’s me know she enjoyed talking to me. this may sound like a nice plain-old ego boost for me, and i suppose it is in a way, but the really nice thing about it is that it reminds me to appreciate catching up with friends. even broader than that, it reminds me to be thankful that i have friends to catch up with!

isn’t dead.

i’m not a hugeeee chivalry fanatic that believes men should be falling all over themselves to pull out our chairs from the table, but it’s still nice once in a while.

one of the men i work with always holds the door open for me and lets me walk through first. it’s an unnecessary thing for him to do, but it’s appreciated.

can be very tricky. i will admit to having had serious trouble with the schedule – or lack thereof – that they seem to run on. but i also know that i rely on them here, without them i would be stuck and not be able to see more of ireland.

sometimes the drivers will be nonchalant, sometimes friendly, and sometimes downright mean. but the other day i encountered a friendly one:

i got on the bus after work, freezing even with my gloves on, and sat down to read (A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini – a great book!!!). I was very into the book and soon enough realized it was my stop so i got up and the driver stopped. but instead of opening the doors right away to release me back into the cold, he asked me for a smile. and at first i didn’t comprehend what he said – just out of it from work i guess – and i had to think.. then it registered and i smiled really big, more because of how silly i felt for pausing like that than anything. and he smiled back and said “your smile could light up a christmas tree!” awww how nice! i smiled the whole walk home :)

today was my 2nd day in ireland, or my first if you dont count the day i flew in and slept the day away. everyone here is very kind – it’s so pleasant to smile and have it returned back. of the 3 cab drivers i’ve driven with, all 3 have been full of helpful friendly advice. the bus i rode on i was able to ride for free! everyone was helping me figure out which bus i needed (i can read the bus signs but i was feeling overwhelmed and i’m very grateful for patient strangers!). when the bus came, i was escorted on by my “friends” and they told the bus driver where i needed to go as i was getting out my euros. he waved my money away and said ill let u know when to get off, go sit – and he smiled. i thought oh gosh how embarassing but how nice! that kind of charity is usually reserved for the disabled in philly (if at all!)

all the smiles are helping me adjust to life here! :D

jesse and renna helped me pack this weekend for ireland. i know it was not the most fun part of the weekend, but i appreciate it greatly because i couldnt have done it without their help. i had been trying to begin the packing process on my own and it was just notttt happening! im a big procrastinator!

love my friends <3

i was shopping at the mall by myself, trying to get used to being on my own and just people watching, and while sitting in the food court there was a young girl of about 7 with her younger brother of around age 5. their parent was no where in sight and the little girl still silently prayed over her meal before touching the food. then she folded her napkin in her lap and began to eat. her younger brother had started eating, but looked up and realized what his sister was doing, and immediately put down his fork and folded his hands in prayer-position, then mouthed some sort of grace. i thought this was so cute! later their father came and sat down. i didn’t notice if he prayed too, but obviously it is a tradition for the kids and i was very impressed!