By Pattie Mihalik

newsgirl@comcast.net

A long time ago Theresa Brewer sang, “Little things mean a lot.”

She was singing about little things in a relationship, but the same thing can be said of life in general. Little things do mean a lot, at least to me.

It’s the small little wonders that captivate me. I thought about all that this morning as I was watering my prized tomato plant and saw new tomatoes the size of marbles on the vine.

The new growth is promising. It promises my tomato plant might keep giving me visual and gastric rewards.

My husband laughed at the way I was ecstatically happy about seeing the tiny tomatoes. He said he liked the way I could get so happy about such a small thing.

I’ve learned a lot of the time it’s not the really big stuff that makes us happy. Truth be told, “really big stuff” doesn’t come along all that often, does it?

But if we learn to find joy and beauty in life’s little offerings we have one of the secrets to being happy.

I just love tiny wonders. My friend Jan is a fabulous, prizewinning gardener. When I visit she shows me all her new flowers and plants and generously tells me to pick something I want.

I always pick the tiny succulents she plants in interesting containers. When she gives them to me I can barely see the promise of the plants poking their heads through the soil. I get a kick out of the fact that there’s “nothing there” until the day when the tiny succulents are clearly visible.

I’m the same way when it comes to collecting seashells. When I go away with our shell club, we take a boat to an island known for having a great variety of nice shells.

I find myself drawn to the tiny shells like augers, jingle shells and little moon shells, all of which are no bigger than an inch. Some are even smaller. It’s those small wonders that dazzle me.

We spend a few hours collecting shells before we head back to the boat where we all show each other what we found.

Usually, our veteran shell seekers want only the big, showy shells, but I was surprised during our last trip when I wasn’t the only one collecting what I call tiny wonders.

“There’s something intriguing about the beauty of a shell that small, isn’t there,” said one sheller.

Well, there is for me.

My find of the day was a tiny starfish that was only about an inch, yet it was perfectly formed.

I also find delight in the tiny wonder that sits each day on the very highest bare branch of a dead tree. A small warbler with a big voice, that little bird can sing a variety of songs.

The little bird sits there on that same dead branch morning, noon and night. When my husband and I come home, the first thing we do is glance at the tree to see if the bird is still there.

David isn’t into birds as much as I am, but I hear him laughing at our amazing warbler.

When I go for my morning gratitude walk I’m not always in the mood. But as I plod along on those off days it’s the little things that reverse my attitude and put more of a spring in my step.

Sometimes it’s just appreciating the small things in nature like the feel of a gentle breeze on my face or the way the sun breaks through to paint the sky with a vivid crayon. On the rare days when I get to see the sun and the moon at the same time, I especially appreciate the day.

The bunny in my yard, the seagulls flying overhead, the beautiful heron — all of nature makes me happy. Sometimes what perks me up is exchanging pleasantries with a favorite neighbor or even with other walkers I don’t know.

Yes, I’m definitely a people person, and those short encounters make me feel good.

A friend of mine went through a long, bad spell that I would have to say turned into a deep depression after her husband of 37 years died. They did everything together to the point where they were the only focal points for each other. When he passed away she felt like she wanted to do absolutely nothing.

Months later I finally noticed she was doing much better and had even joined a senior band.

When I asked her what finally pulled her through, she said it was just tuning in to small pleasures.

When you think about it, it isn’t something monumental that comes along to help us heal. It’s usually a small pleasure that makes us laugh again and start to enjoy the day.

For my neighbor it was cuddling a new dog that made her smile again.

I can pinpoint the exact moment I finally laughed again after my husband Andy died after a long illness.

I signed up for a djembe drumming class because I read it had a healing benefit for many. Sure enough, it didn’t take long during that first class with Moe Jerant before I was laughing out loud.

I do know with all certainty that the more we appreciate life’s small pleasures and tiny wonders, the more we will love life.

Contact Pattie Mihalik at newsgirl@comcast.net.