Joy in the Unexpected

It doesn't happen very often, but when it does it's a true joy. Thanks to streaming services, I can watch every episode of almost any show I want. One of my very favorites is "The Twilight Zone". I've watched this show for years whenever I would find it on network TV or on cable, so when I see an episode that I've never seen before, it's like finding the Holy Grail.

I had a similar experience today listening to an old song that I've heard and loved for years. If you're curious, it's "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden" by Lynn Anderson. I don't listen to music like most people. Most of the time when I'm listening to a song, I'm hearing a lot of the individual components of the song rather than the song as a whole. It's hard to describe. I can hear what the bass player is doing, how many guitars are on the track and exactly what each one of them is playing. I'm listening to how string sections are arranged and how everything is mixed together to make the song work.

Today as I was listening, there was a part that I'd never heard before. I was as excited as I am when I see a never-before-seen episode of "Twilight Zone". I won't bore you with exactly what I heard, but it was a part that provided the background against which I could hear the other parts. It was something simple that made the song make more musical sense. I suspect that usually I'm too busy singing along or focused on one particular thing to have noticed this simple part that was always there but that I had overlooked.

I think something similar can happen with places, and more importantly people that we're familiar with. We can become so used to the familiar that we stop looking for the little things that make the familiar so richly rewarding. Maybe it's a new story from an old friend or family member. Maybe it's that little item in your room that you overlook each day, but that makes the room special.

There is indeed joy in the unexpected. There's new discoveries waiting to be found in the old. Sometimes we just have to look for it and be ready to be astounded when we find it.

Mike