Pet peeves- everyone’s got them. One that comes to mind for me is cotton tearing apart. I don’t know why, but whenever someone is pulling apart a cotton ball it sends shivers down my spine. For other people it might be scraping a knife on a plate, scratching nails on a chalkboard, talking to someone else while on the phone, etc.
I made a new friend a few weekends back that introduced me to a new idea. He called them Pet Cleaves. I’ve thought a lot about them in these last days. The concept behind them is not the little things that really bother us, but rather the little things that bring us joy. As you know by now, I like joy. This idea really intrigued me and got me thinking. The more I think about it, the more I like this concept. The name Pet Cleaves is suiting, though it can be confusing. I would like to pause here and emphasize that you should not look at the first definition of cleave (to split or penetrate something), but the second definition (to cling closely to). Things that bring joy are things that we need to cling to in order to get though a day at a time.
So my pet cleaves? They may seem a little bit odd, but whose aren’t? Looking down and seeing newly shaved legs. Getting to the end of a bag of chips to find that there’s an even number remaining. When the camera snaps at just the right moment to capture a child’s brilliant expression.
One of my favorites is when the sun breaks through the clouds in the form of visible rays. While sunsets and sunrises are breath taking and I love them, the sight of heaven shining down makes me stop and stare in awe.
When God works little things out perfectly, it’s a Pet Cleave for me. You never know how many of these things are put there by him. Maybe God just knew that you needed a little smile. Maybe God was sitting up there looking at his child and wanted to make you happy; what father wouldn’t want that?
I guess I’ve talked about a lot of others already in my post about what brings me joy here, but these are the smaller things. And I'm sure that there are so many more that I can't think of right now...
I’d really love to hear what some of yours are! Please write a quick comment if you think of any ☺
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1 comment:
Jean,
I share a similar "pet cleave." When rays of sun shoot through a cloud, it reminds me of God's glory and love. Another one for me is sunflowers. I love sunflowers. A baby's giggle. Even a newly cleaned room. Thanks for being a tool in God's hand. My day is better and refocused because of your post. Lots of love!
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