Work Blessings

I felt a surge of happiness this morning as I sat on my bed, my glasses tipping off my nose. I was going through my copy of Gabriel Garcia Marquez' Strange Pilgrims, marking off passages, taking notes, re-reading the stories that -- dare I admit it -- thrill me? I'm getting ready for my inaugural literary and food salon this Friday evening. I have ten people coming to Books & Bakes, and another ten in two weeks. The menu is planned -- a sampling of Colombian and Mexican specialties -- and tomorrow I'll shop for the ingredients that I'll prepare on Friday. While the cooking will be a pleasure, it's the reading, the delving in, the excitement of sharing what I love with others, and the anticipation of discussion with a group of intelligent people that makes my heart surge. That burst of happiness is related, too, to the blessing of work -- to doing what one loves, no matter the compensation. It's the word on the page, the feel of the book, the thrill of entering the writer's imagination so effortlessly and then sharing it.