Joy's Spot of Pride

There's lots of construction taking place on the streets near my house where I usually run. I noticed this the other day as I sat in traffic forever, thinking how unusual it was to have so much traffic at this time of day, on this particular street. As I approached the bottleneck, I saw the culprit. A “Spot of Pride” was being built. Yup, these are areas in the medians all throughout the city streets of the town I live in that have been created as community projects for companies and organizations to maintain the landscaping. Some areas are pretty small, about the size of the front yard in a tight subdivision. Others are bigger, like a tiny park. They all have the wooden sign "Spot of Pride" with the name of the organization that is responsible for its upkeep. And they have small trees, cute little shrubs; some have seasonal flowers, mulch, and an occasional sprout of monkey grass. I think it's a great idea, giving the community a clean, green look and providing organizations the opportunity to give back to the neighborhoods in the area.

After I noticed that the traffic was due to the construction of the new spot of pride in the median, I reflected on the name "Spot of Pride" and its meaning. Do I have "Spots of Pride" in my life? But of course I do! And they have little signs with the names of friends and families that contribute to the upkeep. My favorite pastime, running, is a spot of pride. Kevin, my sweet hubby, is one of the contributors to this spot, encouraging me to maintain an active lifestyle, massaging my legs after a particularly hard run, clandestinely dropping a water bottle off at a predetermined location just so I could be refreshed near the end of a route. My love for music is a spot of pride that has been developed and maintained all throughout my life. There are lots of volunteers contributing at this spot – dozens of friends past and present, my parents, church congregations in many locations and of different denominations. This blog is a spot of pride – a new one for me- where I have enjoyed sharing my ramblings, coherent or otherwise, with friends and family, strangers, and the occasional googler who happens to click upon my written thoughts. I have rediscovered my love for writing and used this blog as an outlet for those thoughts that are either afraid of being spoken or for some reason may not fit into the topics of conversations around me. My joy is another spot of pride. No pun intended here, but the happiness and peace I experience is a result of the relationships I share with Jesus, my husband, my family, and my friends. Lots of work, prayer, and tears have been invested in my joy-spot.

One realization that I have come to as I type my thoughts is that for this hobby, talent, memory to be a true “spot of pride”, it has to be maintained by someone else. Someone else, not just me, must contribute to its upkeep. If we don’t experience these moments and activities with others, there’s no real happiness, no satisfaction that life has been worth the experience. I invite you to contribute to someone’s spot of pride. You’ll be pleased to see how our spots intermingle and bring happiness to even the occasional passer-by.