My Favorite Things

So I'm sitting here, at 10:42 pm, listening to the news.  The weather report comes on, and they talk about the impending freezing rain, and Hal starts to sing, "Raindrops Keep Falling on my Head."  I, on the other hand, begin to sing, "Raindrops on roses, and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles..."

Which led me to wonder, what ARE a few of my favorite things?  An incomplete list, at best, and in no particular order, but here goes:

Hal's arm sliding over me in bed when I'm having a nightmare, and hearing him say, "It's alright, I'm here."  Hal's arm around me, sitting on the couch watching a movie, my head against his shoulder.  Hal.

Laughing with my sisters.  Fixing dinner or cleaning up dinner with my sisters.  Playing games with my sisters.  My sisters.

Spending time with my nieces and nephews.  Particularly when I can embarrass my nieces by bursting into song at the drop of a word - and loving that both of my sisters and I will usually all three burst into the exact same song at the exact same spot.  I think we've only missed once.  And I love that Hal now also bursts into song at the drop of a word.

Getting to spend time with my stepchildren, daughter-in-law, and my grandchildren.   Having had a chance to build relationships with these wonderful people.

Singing a hymn or reading a piece of scripture aloud and having the words hit me in a way that they never have before, and being unable to utter a sound because I am so overwhelmed by the meaning of what should be coming out of my mouth, but cannot.

The dry humor of Hal and my brother-in-law Bill, although when they are together it can be dangerous for any and all involved.

Seeing the light turn on for someone during worship or Bible study.

Holding a book in my hands, particularly a book that others have read before me.  Reading words that someone has put together in order to make me think, to make me feel, to make me grow.

Music.  Listening, playing, singing, moving to it.  Although I know sometimes I scare Hal when I move in the car.  And with the amount of lyrics I know.  Ask him sometime about the night I suggested meatloaf for dinner the next night.

Cats.  Every sneezy, itchy, throat-scratchy, eye-watering bit of them.  Except for hairballs.  Hairballs are most definitively NOT one of my favorite things.

Creating things.  Yarn things, mostly, but also fabric things and food things and paper things and written things.

Taking pictures.  Capturing something that I see so that others can see through my eyes.  Capturing moments and emotions and silliness and beauty and even the dirt and the normalness and the mundane, the order and disorder of life in general. 

Chocolate.

A cup of hot tea, with milk and sugar.

The imagination of children before they learn that they shouldn't pretend.