giving presence

as most of you know, i am a firm believer in the value and importance of the “little things.”

the small stuff.

the subtle wonders.

the thoughtful gestures.

the quiet moments.

the simple pleasures.

the tiny details.

the minutiae of life and living that can be overlooked or dismissed or ignored.

the very things that, in fact, make life and living special and fun and lovely.

having said that... sometimes, i’m still totally clueless when it comes to recognizing them.

today, i spent the day out with my mom. we didn’t do anything exciting or extraordinary or outrageous, we just hung out. i’d been staying at my parents’ place for the past two nights while the water heater in my building was being replaced, and she’d asked me if i wanted to go shopping today. so, we hopped into the car just before 10am and off we went.

we wandered through a mall. drove around in the foggy, rainy weather. browsed the aisles of a gigantic and blissfully empty grocery store. picked me up some socks, vitamins, shampoo, chocolate and my calendar of lies for 2010. ate lunch at swiss chalet.

that was it.

no big deal.

but my mom was delighted.

when she dropped me off at the subway, i thanked her for the outing, for my socks and snacks and calendar of lies and big-ass meal... and then she actually thanked me.

just for spending the day with her.

wait. what?

in that moment, i was reminded that sometimes the most unexpected gifts are the ones you give without even realizing they’re being given. that the most seemingly insignificant gestures aren’t actually devoid of significance. and that something as simple as your presence or time, even if it’s not of much consequence to you, can mean so much to someone else.

(as can funky, stripy dollar-store socks, btw.)