On Saturday morning I awoke in tremendous pain from my braces. Eating was of absolutely no interest to me; however, by noon I knew I’d have to try to get something down so as not to let my new brace face get the best of me. I scoured the cupboards for the softest thing I could find and decided that lunch would consist of egg noodles with butter (no pasta sauce for me, as it stains the bands on the braces). Fifteen minutes later, I ladled steaming hot , overcooked pasta into two bowls --one for me, and one for Marty-- and we sat down to eat.
My first bite was wholly uncomfortable, but by now my appetite had been piqued and I was bound and determined to get at least a few mouthfuls down. Alas, no such fortune. As I chomped down on my second bite, I nearly blasted straight out of my chair and through the roof.
As Marty happily slurped up every saucy forkful, I just sat there –bowl cupped in my hands– willing myself not to cry over my own frustration. “What can I do for you, Sweetie?” Marty asked. I shook my head in dismay and centered my focus toward the window, watching as an orange leaf flittered in the wind… hanging on desperately to the branch from which it hung.
Being a complete foodie at heart, I was less upset by the pain and more upset by my inability to enjoy food. “It’ll get better soon – I promise, Babe,” he said as he stood up and carried his empty bowl off to the sink. As I continued to stare out the window, I heard his footsteps on the stairs and settled back to wallow in my discomfort.
Within seconds Marty returned to the room and was standing before me with a wide smile on his face. He held his arms behind his back and as he sat down beside me, I heard the crinkling of wrapping paper. “This is a little something to take your mind off your mouth,” he said as he took the bowl from my hands and in its place set a large package. I smiled and peeled back the tape. As I lifted the wrapping, bold golden font stood against the solid black box: “Nikon D3100 / AF-S DS Nikkor / 18-55 mm.”
The camera I wanted. The SLR Marty had been telling me about for months.
Tears sprang to my eyes, I threw my arms around him, and I cried.
…How lucky I am.
For the rest of the afternoon, I played with the features on my shiny new camera and spent some time getting to know it as best I could. Joey and Tao were my subjects and they proved to be good sports as I shot photo after photo of them doing nothing in particular, but looking pretty in the process.
As I did so, I learned that there's no better remedy for pain than having the magical opportunity to look at life through a new lens.
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| "It wasn't me" |
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| "Hmmmm" |
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| "Zzzz" |
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| "Contemplation" |
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| "Don't bug me" |
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| "Life is good" |
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| "Sittin' pretty" |
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| "Huh?" |
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| "Stop and smell the roses" |
