As I floated around in my pool the other day, I contemplated life. This is what I concluded:

I am breathing. I am in my pool.Therefore … life is good.OK. It's not Dalai Lama. What did you expect? I don't mediate on a mountain in Tibet. I can't do a downward facing dog in yoga. Shoot. I can barely sit on my hind legs and beg like a dog.What I'm trying to say is, I don't spend a lot of time trying to figure out life.I want to say, I'm a simple gal with simple needs.Ahhhh. But then I started to think about it. How simple is simple?Take my little old backyard pool. Well, not literally. I enjoy it too much.I just bought a container of chlorine tablets that cost me $60. Then there's the pH increase ($17), hose replacement ($13), shock ($5), clarifier ($8), test strips ($7) and the cost of electricity to run the filter (about $50 a month).Not to mention the manpower to keep it clean. If I had to pay my "Pool Boy" in actual dollars, well, let's just say I wouldn't be able to afford him.When I am in my pool, I like to have a Coke. So add $5 for a case of Coke to keep me happy for a week or two.I need reading material. I love floating around with a favorite magazine or two. "A Primitive Place" and "Country Sampler" tie for top faves. "Cooking with Paula Deen" (yes, I still love Paula despite all the recent bad publicity) and "Taste of Home" rank up there. At $10 and $5 a pop, not cheap reads.I love reading novels and mostly get them from the library … free! But library picks are not ideal for pool reading. If they "accidentally" fall in the pool, replacing that book is costly. Been there, done that twice. So I recently bought four paperbacks for $10 at the library. That way if they kind of get a little wet, I won't feel so bad.Then there's the weekends. Because I have the pool, Sunday family get-togethers are at my house. So of course I have to provide snacks and dinner. I love doing it. I'm just saying … cha-ching, cha-ching.We recently painted all the wood on the deck, replaced the carpeting, added white lattice and bought new chairs. The price tag on all that came to $600.Suddenly, my simple little backyard pool doesn't sound so simple.But the joy, peace, serenity and tranquility I derive from it?Priceless.Here's how I feel about my pool in a clamshell:I have a little backyard pool,It keeps me calm and keeps me cool.I pray to wake to a sunny day,So I can splash and I can play.I like to float in my favorite chair,Without a worry or a care.Sometimes I'm Esther Williams,Queen of the Aqua Ballet forums.Sometimes I swim the English Channel,Or float my way to far off islands.I've been in many a water gun fight,Wet battles of laughter, glee and sprite.I can't explain the joy I feel,I only know it's true and real,That when I'm in my backyard pool,My soul is refreshed and renewed.