The funniest thing happened last night. I went to bed at midnight and as I do every night, I told Alexa on my Echo to play Carpenters’ music for an hour. I usually say play music from the 70s. Well, I must’ve gone right to sleep. I woke up a while later and I heard this hammer just rhythmically hitting a nail head, steady and strong. I looked out the window at the house next door, thinking what could they be doing. Walked to the front of the house and looked out. Came back to my bedroom, got back under the covers, and I still heard the hammer. Then I realized Alexa was playing a carpenter’s music not The Carpenters music. Shady Oaks here I come!

Today is so pretty! Blue sky with a few thin white clouds sketched across the sky canvas by Father Sky. Jet contrails are crossing the sky, morphing into angel feather clouds. The yard is alive with goldfinches and cardinals. Got hot in the porch swing in the sun, had to change to the porch swing in the shade. Got cold in that swing so I’m back in the swing in the sun. Got a pint jar of sweet tea in the swing slat’s cup holder and a new pack of Doublemint chewing gum in my pocket. Life can’t get any better right now. I’m hearing a new bird song but don’t see any new birds, just cardinals, wrens, goldfinches, purple finches and doves. The song sounds like a squeaky door hinge. Probably a blue jay who got tired of screeching. The glee of titmice are talking so loudly, with their song calls of “Peter, Peter,” the blue jay can’t get any one to respond to his song.

Watched the sunset pageant from my seat on the swing late afternoon. The sun walked down the horizon in a silver sequined gown, blinding and bright, as Mother Nature painted the backdrop in pale subdued watercolors of blue and gold and coconut. The layered colors faded together as the sun turned off the day’s light and darkness covered the yard. Father Sky kissed the sun goodnight and left to wake the thin crescent moon and the twinkling stars in their velvet night covers, hanging them in the sky to guide the night travelers. The day ended, the night beginning.

Had my book of quotes in the swing and just flipping through I saw one about crayons. “Life is about using the whole box of crayons,” RuPaul. Just wondering if we’re using the traditional box of eight crayons or the giant box of 64 crayons for our lives. I always loved the 24 pack of crayons the best. Just enough crayons, just enough colors to be exciting, but no too many choices. Always had trouble with the 64 size box. I could never get the crayons back in their places, making them fit back in the box without trouble. Never used the sharpener, either. And if I accidentally broke one, my box was ruined.

Coloring is actually great for children’s dexterity and fine motor skills. I have two adult coloring books, both gifts and both featuring birds. Coloring in adult books is said, according to Mark Taylor, “to relax your brain and improve brain function, induce meditative state, improve motor skills, and improve sleep.” Maybe I should break out the colored pencils and work in my bird coloring book every night.

Life is like a box of crayons. Every crayon in a box of crayons is different. And each person has a favorite color. Some crayons are used all the time, their papers torn down, their points dull. Some crayons never get used, just taking up space in the box. Some boxes worn, some boxes new, some boxes missing a few crayons. Life is beautiful in its colors and we experience life in more than black and white. We are all unique, some of us sharp, some of us dull, some of us light, some of us dark, but we work together to make life a colorful world. I guess we need to be brave when we choose the crayons for our lives. Our attitude from the colors we choose dictates our lives.

If we have faith in God, we see the colors of God’s love in rainbows and in the sunshine’s rays of happiness. When trials and burdens in our lives push us into the darkness, we see a box of crayons full of purples and blacks and dark blues. We even might feel we’ve broken all our crayons but God can create something beautiful from the brokenness. Through our prayers and through God’s love and God’s grace, we can change those shades of darkness in our crayon boxes into days full of hope and bright colors.

“Your attitude is like a box of crayons that color your world. Constantly color your picture gray, and your picture will always be bleak. Try adding some bright colors to the picture by including humor, and your picture begins to lighten up.” — Allen Klein