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Cranberry Sprite
It occurred to me today that this would be the time of year that I’d start making my annual scavenger hunt through all of the local grocery stores on behalf of Melissa, looking for any cranberry-flavored soda/pop. 🥤
It’s true, we often disagreed on the term for it — she preferred “soda,” I called it “pop.”
But we were in agreement on the substance of the matter, that Melissa loved those cranberry-flavored carbonated beverages, which were usually seasonal, appearing only around the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.
At that time of year, I would even put gasoline in the car from varying gas stations ⛽, always checking inside their little store to see if they stocked any of the desired drinks.
This pursuit wasn’t a burden — it was an adventure. It’s one of those seemingly small things you do for a person you love.
Seeing the happiness on her face for something like this — she had a unique smile that lit up the room, her eyes and her smile so radiant when presented with something thoughtful that brought her joy, even if it wasn’t expensive. 😀
Even our Christmas gifts 🎁 to each other were like that — never was it something extravagant; rather, it was about finding those unique gifts that we knew the other person would love, that would bring them joy because it was so perfect for them.
That’s one thing I really miss about her at this time of year — trying to find a gift that would delight her, knowing that she had certainly already found something for me.
And she was like this with so many people she loved — remembering something they had mentioned months before and finding it for them. The number of times I heard someone say to her, “How did you remember??” She just had a generosity that flowed out of her thoughtfulness and care for others.
I’m thankful I got to witness so much of that from her — just one of many areas where I learned from her silent teaching by example. I don’t know that I’ll ever be as good as the teacher, but I’m inspired to try. ♥️
