It's the little things...

Isn't it true that its the little things that can help 'top off' our happiness tank? Those little gestures that mean the most? Whether its a phone call from a friend just at the right moment, or a picture on the fridge from your littlest Picasso...

My 'little thing' as of late is, of all things, an electric pencil sharpener. That stupid thing just makes me so damn happy... the hum of it as I sharpen 6 dozen pencils for back to school. (yes, the supply list actually specifies that they need to be 'sharpened'...what a pain!)

I've never had an electric pencil sharpener. Even when I was teaching, my classroom had the old 'crank' sharpener, with the trash can strategically placed underneath to catch all the shavings (because of course it was so friggin' old that the outer portion was missing... damn AISD...oops, that's a whole other blog...)

I've bought several of the little handheld pencil sharpeners, but the kids always seem to end up breaking or losing them. (or they might be in the junk drawer, but I'm too scared at this point to even open it!)

So when Phil brought home an electric pencil sharpener last week (complete with batteries!) out of the blue, I could have kissed him! (Oh wait, maybe I did! ;-) He knew sharpening all those pencils was going to drive me berserk, and he stepped up and did that one little thing to make me happy.

It was a simple gesture, but it was his way of letting me know that he hears me and appreciates the things I do, and wants to make my life just a little easier. Or maybe they were just on special at Office Depot ... either way, my pencil sharpener makes me happy.

It's the little things... heck, who needs flowers, or even poetry? I can write my own...with freshly sharpened pencil.