I saw five robins in my front yard this morning. It’s almost time for baseball and the backstop at the Hinsdale Little League field in Peirce Park is being redone. Gabby AND Rachel are the next Bachelorettes and it’s March Madness. After two long years of COVID and now, with a war in Ukraine, it helps to find little things in our messy world that bring joy.
I’m flattened by this post on social media. “Morning routine: 1. Wake up. 2. Check on Zelensky. 3. Coffee.”
It’s surreal to watch a war happening in real time. The first time I saw war unfold on television I was sitting on a couch in my boss’s office on East Wacker Drive. Our entire office was transfixed watching missiles fly on CNN during the first Gulf War. It’s something you hope you’ll never see again.
And yet, twin lions made it out of Kyiv alive to an animal sanctuary in Belgium. The small wins keep us going. Please stop a minute and say a prayer for the people in Ukraine.
I got caught up in the drama of the most recent episodes of “The Bachelor.” Clayton, the bachelor, seemed like a genial fellow. A little boring almost. But the ladies, ummm Shanae, drew me in. If you didn’t watch, it was a doozy. Rachel sobbing on the hard stairs of a cavernous building in Iceland. Snow flying in the night. Please, I can’t. And Gabby, telling off Clayton in language extraordinaire. Am I being too effusive by saying I want to be both of their moms? Clayton clearly isn’t a Prince Charming and this isn’t a Cinderella story. But Rachel and Gabby are going to be the next Bachelorettes, together. Little things are awesome.
Now that it’s March, we’ve got Madness and that does have Cinderella stories. I’m writing this a week ahead of publication, so who know what teams will still be dancing? My hope is a Cinderella takes the tournament. I was rooting for Indiana, (my son’s school, they’re out), am still rooting for Loyola Chicago, a No. 10 seed, (love Sister Jean!).
Magical madness seemed to happen when my family saw U Conn win the Championship in Arlington, Texas in 2014. Granted, U Conn was a 7 seed that beat 8 seeded Kentucky, but it seemed like a Cinderella story when the confetti went flying after the game. But a moment I’ll remember most was on the jumbotron the size of a 747, the cameras cut to former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush sitting together enjoying the game like two old college buddies. The crowd went wild. People, it’s the little things.
— Lisa Seplak of Hinsdale is a contributing columnist. Readers can email her at [email protected].