April 11 - All Spring in a Day

It's a spectacular day, so I walk home through the park that's near my apartment. After weeks of cold rainy weather that we should have left behind in February, it's finally spring. It's sunny. Warm. Clear. Sunglasses. No jackets, and maybe the warmth feels even sweeter because we had to wait so long to get it.
There's an acoustic reggae group practicing in the gazebo. Two guitars, two congas, two sweeter than honey harmonizing female vocals. There's a bench so I sit.
A grandmother and her grand kid are next to the gazebo and the grandmother is teaching the kid how to clap to the rhythm.
Three boys are sprinting around the park playing some sort of hide and seek/tag game.
Occasionally a couple will sit on a bench for a few minutes, listen to the music, and smile. Sometimes someone will sit down by himself or herself and just listen. No texting on the cell phone and you never see that here.
You gotta love the accidental discoveries, the harmonizing female vocals that you'd never heard before and can't imagine how you made it this far in life without them. You gotta leave the house. That's the key. You gotta get out. Staying at home is no good because the harmonies aren't there.
It's only 5 o clock but it's already not as bright as it was 30 minutes ago, and I know I need to get going, because I don't want to be late to meet my friend, but I don't want to leave, so I cut other things out of my schedule. I don't need to go home and get my jacket, I don't need to stop by the store. I can stay a little longer.
The grandmother and child leave and wave goodbye to the musicians and the musicians wave back and it's all just so freaking nice. Nice enough to forget about all the bad stuff in the world, and that's how great this day is, this moment. It's nice enough to remind you that the world is a good place.
Just before I leave, I see an old woman inject a little dance groove into her walk, and I'm so glad I happened to look at her at just the right time.
And to think I almost took a different way home.