It's the Little Things

Lagniappe (pronounced lanyap for those of you who have been saying laggynappy!!)? What is that? I started this blog a few weeks ago giving it a name that is very dear to my heart. My mom and I use the term lagniappe all the time. It's a Louisiana French word meaning a little something extra. To us, it's the bell tied to the bow of the wrapped Christmas gift, the twine tied around the mason jar filled with fresh flowers, the felt flower attached to the newly sewn dress, or the Happy February 12th gift you get for no reason at all.

In this fast-paced, glitzed up world we live in, it's often hard to appreciate the little things, the little extras that are given to us. We whiz by them in a rush out the door to get to the baseball practice, which will be followed by violin lessons. They are a blur in our peripheral vision as we fly down the road in a hurry to get to school or get to church. They are blocked out as we have our eyes and minds buried deep inside our phones or other electronic devices. We miss out on so much that God has to offer us. God's lagniappe is the beautiful sunset shining on the lake, the new buds on the trees in the spring, the glistening ice on the crepe myrtle branches, the smell of fresh cut grass on the golf course.

God wants us to slow down. To stop and breathe. To take time to listen to rolling thunder in the distance. To hear the sounds of children laughing as they squirt each other with the water hose. To appreciate the beauty that surrounds us daily, in whatever season, in whatever weather.

The little extras, as they seem in the moment, often times turn into the big things. Stopping to help an elderly lady get her grocery basket may seem like just a little something. But, to her it means the world because you not only helped her to her car, you also took away a strong fear that she would fall and hurt herself.

In our lives, the big things will come. And, we will enjoy them. I just hope I don't get so caught up in the next big event, that I miss seeing the face of God in little extras!