HIDDEN TREASURE
Pirates are bad, and they seek buried treasure. I am not a pirate but I did discover some buried treasure.
I said I am not a pirate but I have been bad lately, really bad! No! I haven’t picked a fight or robbed anyone, but I have picked up a stinking, rotten attitude that has robbed me of peace and joy.
I have tried taking a nice hot shower and pasting on a smile, but all that is skin deep. It helps a bit but does not get to the root of soul sickness.
Meandering in the library one day, not being in a hurry to get home, I browsed through books on the shelves and put them back. I didn’t want a novel, and I didn’t want a “How To” book. I didn’t want to read anything! Misery creates apathy.
Then, one book caught my eye. It was “One Thousand Gifts” by Ann Voskamp. I held it. I turned it over and read the back cover. I flipped to a page and read a paragraph. I was gripped by the prose.
But, remembering that I didn’t care about anything anymore and didn’t want to read anything, I put it back on the shelf and began to walk out of the library. That book on the shelf called out to me! It pulled me back. I took it off the shelf and signed it out.
Gratitude. The book was about gratitude. Gratitude in small things. Suddenly, I realized I had found treasure. That volume was buried treasure for me. It was buried amongst thousands of books in my public library like a treasure chest buried in the sand of the beach on a desert island. And I was the pirate who had discovered the gold!
Over the next few weeks I savored the words. (Marigold is generous with renewals!). Gradually my soul was lifted from despondency. I had been living in a dark world, and, yes, the world certainly has darkness, but even at night the moon continues to reflect the light from the sun; and every dawn the world lights up again. I can live with the darkness because always there is light, if not now, then certainly when morning comes.
On that day, when I went to the library, I found some hidden treasure on the shelves. Now, each day, I practice looking for the treasures stored away in its moments.
by Andrea Kidd
