Three shakes. A “small good thing” in the words of Raymond Carver, a contemporary short story writer, in one of his short stories. Three shakes delivered to celebrate a small victory, a reminder that until further notice, we celebrate everything.

This weekend was fraught with frustration as we battled a huge plumbing issue during self-isolation that even the plumber couldn’t fix from the street. We were unable to wash clothes, use the dishwasher or two of our bathrooms or showers. Admittedly, not being able to use TWO of our bathrooms is a very “first world” problem to have. There are many others in the world who have none. Thankfully, my husband worked tirelessly from the inside, accessing several access points through out the house until he solved the issue hours (really DAYS) later. I admire and am grateful for his perseverance. I admire and am grateful for HIM.

Later that night, we violated our self-isolation by ordering three shakes from Shake Shake, delivered from DoorDash as a celebration of our victory, small victory that it was. I ordered the shakes and had the delivery person leave them on the porch. I opened the door after they left, using gloves. I wiped the outside of the styrofoam containers with disinfectant, as Covid-19 lasts about twenty-four hours on cardboard and approximately two to three days on plastic according to some sources. I transferred the shakes to our own decorative glasses inside the house, once the decontamination process ended. It has come to this, I thought to myself. But it was so worth the wait, as it was a “small good thing.”

TODAY, someone very special delivered surprise home-made muffins to our porch without notice. Another “small good thing” that caused our hearts to soar. A small good thing, an act of kindness, that helps us to rise above the themes of helplessness, loss, conflict, communication, isolation and loneliness that Raymond Carver develops in his story to lead the reader to discover our connection with others. The kindness of food and comfort given by another illustrates a shared understanding with others, letting us know we are all in this together.

You see, in our house, until further notice, we celebrate EVERYTHING. Sometimes it really IS the “little things” that make a difference.

“Together, together, together everyone
Together, together, come on lets have some fun
Together, we’re there for each other every time
Together, together come on let’s do this right….

Everyone is special in their own way
We make each other strong (we make each other strong)
We’re not the same
We’re different in a good way
Together’s where we belong…

We’re all in this together
Once we know
That we are
We’re all stars
And we see that
We’re all in this together
And it shows
When we stand
Hand in hand….”

-“We’re All In This Together” by Matthew Gerrard and Robbie Nevil

Find the small things to celebrate today. A smile, a gesture of kindness. Muffins left upon your porch by a special visitor. A shared connection with others. Carpe diem, friends….