At the corner of my street stand eight or so very tall pine trees.  This morning on my walk, they graced me with the subtle hint of their fragrance. This smell, cannot be reproduced. 

I have an essential oil of pine and while I know it is the scent and the essence of the tree, smelling the pine air in the morning cannot be put in any bottle.  And, the scent is not always present to me on my walks. 

It must be a combination of humidity, air flow, and biggest of all, a focused, not wandering mind.  Nothing lifts my spirit, and my soul like the way that nature does. There is always time to experience God Joy moments.

On Sunday I took my mom to church.  I had attended services on Saturday and was really not in the mood to go again on Sunday, but it was for mom and we went.

An elderly woman was sitting close to the end of the pew we chose to occupy.  In a short time, a very young man came in and sat next to this woman.  Given the huge age difference, I was thinking that at the least this woman was his grandmother, maybe even his Great Grandmother.

As the service began, it became apparent to me that this young man did really not want to be here.  At various points he had his head down and held his forehead, or had his head up with eyes closed.  He did not sing or participate at all.  He also left at one point and did not return for maybe 10 - 15 minutes. 

Yet - he was attentive to the woman at times.  He had his hand on her back from time to time, and he made certain that she received Eucharist in her seat.

As they left at the end, I told the young man that he had done a great thing today.  He did not acknowledge my affirmation and he just kept walking.

My take away was enormous.  This God moment provided me with a new experience of God.  I knew that this little old lady was thrilled to be at Church.  I knew that God was happy too, for even though the young man was not so happy, he did a wonderful thing.  He let go of his ego desires (or complaints!) and honored someone else who was very dear to him. 

This made me realize that I too, do a lot of things for my mom, that i might really rather not do, and I do them anyway.  When others tell me how wonderful it is that I do all these things, internally, I'm rolling my eyes (almost what this young man did as I affirmed him) feeling guilty because I really did not want to be/do what I've been doing.  I realized that I dismiss a lot of what I do if I'm not in a happy, joy filled state.  Face it, that cannot always be the state in being a caregiver.

Because of this God Moment, I realized that Mom is happy, God is happy and I too have overcome an ego who often wants her own way.  I have realized that God is not judging me as harshly as I am, and that very possibly, God is happy with what I do and what I have done for my mom - even if I'm not dancing to do it! 

In the end it is about what I actually do and the motive that pushes me, my mom's care, must really be coming from a deeper place within that honors her spirit and her being.  Maybe I can let go of the harsh judge in me -  and embrace the love of mom and God!  What a delightful thought and way of living and being.

Sunday's God moment has been a dose of Grace for me and I welcome and receive it with gratitude!