The Surprise Of A Gift Can Be Better Than The Gift Itself
Take Pen to Paper: Edition 115
Greetings Friends!
The holidays are upon us. You have probably already finished your gift shopping. No? I’m in good company then.
This is the time of year when packages start showing up on front porches around the country.
In this newsletter:
Where is my delivery?
A surprise delivery.
A surprise can be a gift.
Home Delivery
I remember when the only thing we had delivered to our house besides the mail was milk. We trusted the milkman to walk into our house (if we weren’t home) to put the milk in the refrigerator.
We now have boxes containing almost anything delivered and left on our front porch. It’s convenient and often cheaper.
It’s not foolproof.
When we moved to our neighborhood seven years ago, we didn’t realize we had a duplicate cul-de-sac on the next street. Both are right turns off the same road. Both have a one-story house sitting at the end of the cul-de-sac. Both streets start with the same word and to complete the duplication, both have the same house number.
The Donaldson’s (not their real name) received many Christmas presents that first year - for us. They still do. We get their mail and packages as well.
We have learned not to open packages or mail until we look to see who it’s for. I make a lot of deliveries on my walks.
A Living Package
I wasn’t surprised to return home and see a package on our front porch a few weeks ago.
As I got closer to the house, it didn’t look like a typical package. The neighbor’s cat was crouched out in the yard, staring at it. Was it an animal? Maybe even a dead animal left by the cat? Cats do that.
I opened the front door from the inside and looked through the storm door. No, we had not ordered this. It was not something the Donaldson’s had ordered. The cat was smart to keep its distance.
A very much alive snapping turtle with a shell the size of a serving platter was sunning on our front porch.
This Surprise Was A Gift
Even though we had not ordered this turtle, I considered it a gift.
I had never been that close to a snapping turtle. They are amazing and intimidating creatures. My husband picked it up by its tail and estimated its weight to be ten pounds. We released it in the yard, knowing it would wander back down to the creek behind our house.
Do you know why I call it a gift?
It made me smile and marvel.
How did it get on the porch? Our neighbors would not play a practical joke on us - not even the Donaldson’s.
I saw it up close with its mouth open (it didn’t like being picked up, and its mouth opened WIDE). Its underneath wasn’t closed up like a box turtle (I wrote about those in Take Pen to Paper: Edition 96.)
I had a new story to tell to you and our neighbors. Our next-door neighbors have two little boys, and I didn’t want them poking at a snapping turtle.
Not everyone would consider a snapping turtle a gift. But it was an unexpected, happy surprise for me.
Isn’t what you consider a gift a matter of perspective?
I may not have wanted a snapping turtle, but the surprise of finding one on my front porch was a gift.
How would you feel if you found a snapping turtle on your front porch?
7 Days, 7 Thoughts on Gratitude and Good:
So how did the turtle get up the four steps to my front door? This video might explain how. The turtle in the video looks a little smaller than the one on our porch. 🐢
This short video tells you more about a snapping turtle and why you need to stay away from them.
I am grateful my husband was aroung to get the turtle off the porch. It’s one of the little things I wrote about in Take Pen to Paper: Edition 105. It seems like I am always encountering wild animals.
What should you do if you come across a snapping turtle? Picking it up by it’s tail is not the best idea. Here are some guidelines.
It’s good to know your neighbors. Don’t wait until the wrong package arrives at your house to get to know them. 🏡🏘️
Taking into consideration all delivery companies, an average of 58 million packages are deliverer daily in the US. 📦
Happy surprises are a good thing. There is science behind it.
Thank you for reading. Whatever arrives at your doorstep, I hope it makes you smile.
Until next time,
💚
Susan
What kind of surprises make you smile? Leave a comment and let me know. I would love to read about it.
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I have a 2nd newsletter about journaling. If you are interested or know someone who would be, check it out at From The Pen’s Nib: A Commonplace Book About Journaling.