There I was – up on a stage in tap shoes. With a bright red costume and a rhinestone necklace and fishnet stockings. And false eyelashes. Tap dancing. In front of people. At 68 years old.

Things like that happen when you’re retired and you have time to do things you wanted to do a long time ago but couldn’t fit into your schedule.

And while it might be kind of crazy, it’s also kind of fun.

There we were – walking on the wet sand after the storm, refusing to go inside even though it had been raining just moments before – when the sun found a break in the clouds and peaked in. And then, as the evening progressed, the clouds cleared away for the sun just as it was setting. And a rainbow came out and did a full circle as the arch overhead was reflected in the sand below.

Things like that happen when you don’t give up on the weather. When you put yourself in the right place. And you get a gift of color and grace from the sky.

And while it was totally unexpected for the weather to turn, it was totally magical when it did.

Which goes to show that the things that make us happy aren’t things. 

More often, they are moments.

There I was, on a quiet afternoon, visiting my grandchildren who live three states away, when my four-year-old granddaughter came and put her head on my lap.

 As I stroked her hair, my six-year-old grandson came over and told me in great detail about a movie he’d just watched that caught his imagination. Over 20 minutes of fast talking with only a quick breath now and then, he told me what happened first and what happened next, and I relished his enthusiasm more than I understood the story.

My grandchildren brought love to me. And trust. And I gave it back.

Which goes to show that you don’t have to make moments yourself. Sometimes they just come to you.

We all have those moments. They might not include tap shoes or rainbows or fingers in hair or movie reviews, but for each of us, if we pay attention, we will find them rich gifts.

Some we make happen, some others make happen, some come by being where we already are and noticing.

Don’t miss any one.