Sometimes you find yourself heading in one direction, and then all of a sudden, everything changes and you’re heading in a totally new way.

That’s happened to me more than once in my life.

Today, it happened in the most wonderful way.

I was going to start this blog by saying that there’s never a right or a wrong to any story.  There are only different perspectives.  And I had a lot to say about that.  About how a person always thinks of themselves as the hero of the story — but sometimes, someone else doesn’t see it the same way.

And then, as I sat waiting for the login for this page to load, while the man and Lucy wandered around the yard in the cold, drizzly darkness, someone pounded on our front door.  And I got up, thinking I’d accidentally locked John out.  But instead, there sat two packages propped next to our door.

Let me pause here, and rewind a little bit.

Last year, for the first time, we celebrated Christmas at home — just the two of us.  Some of it was wonderful — waking up and exchanging gifts, gluttonously eating out at restaurants we love — some of it we need to re-think (movies on Christmas Day sounds good  … but isn’t).  Anyway, who knows when that will happen again — but we decided we liked doing our own exchange just us two.  So this year we exchanged our pressies before heading to Mansfield for Christmas with the Family #1.  Unfortunately, one of my presents hadn’t arrived at the time.  But we didn’t worry about that.

It arrived tonight.

As I unwrapped the cardboard, my brain spun with speculation.  I had no idea what this final present was.  None.  Based on the shape, I randomly mentioned to John that there were some things I’d like to frame in the future.   He rolled his eyes.  He’d heard it before.

And then, the last fold fell away, and my breath caught in my throat, and like I said, everything changed.

I’ve owned and carried around with me (rolled tightly in a rubber-banded spiral) a photograph poster from the Metropolitan Museum of Art for …. oh, let’s just say many years.  It’s one of my most favorite images, a picture in my head that symbolized realized dreams.

I found out tonight, as I held a framed copy in shaking hands, my vision blurred with tears, that it’s called “Leg Warmers.”  I’d never known that.

And in that moment, all the angst and unhappiness and introspection that had filled me to the brim for the past 48 hours dissipated.  And life -suddenly- again felt full of hope and possibility.

I won’t always receive my most favorite image on my doorstep on bad days.  I know there will be challenging times when I have to find that feeling, that motivation, all on my own.  But today, I am grateful beyond explanation that my husband listens to me and actually hears me.  He makes my dreams come true.