1. Sunflowers. Eric stopped at Garden Sweet‘s stand to buy strawberries, but they didn’t have any, so he got tomatoes instead, and a sunflower for my desk.

2. Sweet Sam, asleep in his crate while I work, learning to eat at the “big dog” spot, protecting me from garbage trucks and squirrels and mail people and animals on the TV, putting up with all the extra attention, sleeping in with me, taking lots of walks, and all the wordless communication that can happen when I really pay attention.

3. New Quan Yin and Ganesh for my writing desk, bought from Nepal Tibet Imports, a local store where I’ve been shopping for the past 20 years, still owned and worked by the same family that started it. The Quan Yin is sitting on a Snow Lion, which looks like a huge dog, is a symbol of bravery and the guardian of truth.

4. A new dishwasher, (yes, Mom, we finally got one!), and a local company to buy from that has been around almost as long as me, Poudre Valley Appliance, established in 1968. The thing Eric and I hadn’t expected is how much more counterspace we have now since there’s no longer a need for a dish rack.

5. Hummingbird feeder. We loved the one at the cabin so much that we decided to try one in our backyard. We’ve only seen one hummingbird so far, and we aren’t sure if it was actually able to get anything from our feeder, but we are hopeful that word will get around that the lunch buffet is open.

Bonus Joy: Teaching from Pema Chödrön. I have been watching a series of videos she made for a weekend at the Omega Institute, “Marks of Existence,” and her talk on suffering was very helpful. She is so wise, so funny, tells the best stories and gives the best advice.