The mission of Joy Benchmarks is remembering to find joy in the smallest things. Benchmarks are important. They are how we measure things that are difficult to quantify like greatness and success. Most of the time we reach upward toward benchmarks. Joy isn’t like that. Joy benchmarks are set low. Last night I discovered a new joy benchmark. It filled me with so much joy it put a big smile on my face. Did I find out I won an award? Won the lottery? No. I put on brand new socks and they fit my feet perfectly.
This is an achievement for me because I have, well, bizarre feet. My wide feet have a high arch and the muscles surrounding my feet are weaker than pipe cleaners. When I walk, I waddle quite a bit. A wide waddling gait is part of having myasthenia gravis. Consequently when I walk my feet hit the ground hard.
This makes finding shoes that fit difficult. It also makes finding socks a nightmare. Socks that are wide enough to accommodate my goofy feet are usually too big at the ankle or calf. My socks fall down and are gobbled into my shoes. Then they bunch up under my arch. To make matters worse I am sensitive to sock seams. If sock seam rotates into the wrong position it drives me crazy. While driving I have pulled over into a parking lot, taken off my shoe and fixed my sock.
I want socks that fit. Not too tight, not too loose. I want my heel to actually fit in the heel cup and not have the heel rotate around in front. I want padded and soft socks with just the right amount of stretch. I want my socks to cradle my sore arch in all the right places. For the longest time I thought I needed socks knit from the tails of a hundred unicorns. That is, until last night.
It was cold last night. I can't sleep with cold feet. Before I went to bed I pulled on a pair of new socks. And they fit. Wide enough for my instep. Wide enough for my toes. The seam didn’t scratch my diabetic feet, alleviating a new concern. The arch has support in exactly the right places. My heel fits in the heel cup and the top of the socks fit. I don’t know if these socks are made of unicorn tail hair. I do know they are made by Hanes. My new Hanes Women's Sport Crew Socks gave me a brand new joy benchmark: socks that fit. It’s a benchmark I didn’t know I needed until I found Sock Nirvana
Remember to look for new joy benchmarks. They are scattered through out your life, hiding in plain sight. You just have to know how to look for little treasures and then savor them.
Yesterday my socks brought me joy. What little thing has given you joy lately?
hi, marie, I liked this part, especially...and the other chapters are great, too.
ReplyDeleteWhat has given me joy lately is the sky. Late afternoon when we go for a walk "around the block" the clouds are backlit by the sun and gorgeous mushroom shapes, tinted by purple and a bit of orange. Then, later, when we walk back from supper the moon is that huge, round,orange disc at the east horizon...simply breathtaking. Both sights make me feel like I belong in this universe.
cheers on you new project (your writing is topnotch)
love, Louise
You write like a painter, Louise. I'm glad you are enjoying the sky. I saw a beautiful moon the other day and I too felt glad to be alive.
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