High 5

This post brought to you by Mama Kat's Pretty Much World Famous Writer's Workshop and Prompt #3:

List 5 Things that Bring You Comfort

I love lists
I really do
I could make lists all day long

Lists like:

To Do
To Buy
Gift Ideas
Get Rich Quick Schemes
Cards I Need to Buy 
Books I Want to Read
Places I Want to Visit
Laws I'd Like to See Passed
Laws I want Repealed
Possible Careers
Plot Ideas for my (Fake) Movie
Cast Ideas for my (Fake) Movie
Possible Pen Names
People I think would be fun to have as our POTUS

I like list so much that sometimes, I'll make a list of thing I've already done just for the sake of making a list.......and crossing things off so I have a sense of accomplishment

I  make the best list when I'm in the shower or driving
Which means I have no pen, no paper and that I'll forget the list by the time I remember to write the list.......I bet I've lost millions of dollars as a direct result of this

Today, a new list: 5 Things That Bring Me Comfort

Things - not people, not places, but things

And given I'm a pretty literal kind of girl, thing is

object: an inanimate object

unspecified item: an unnamed or unspecified object

occurrence: something that occurs, or something that is done

I find comfort in my 10+ year old grey sweatshirt...think Jennifer Beals....it's my woobie
I wore it when I was really fat, after I lost all me weight, all through my pregnancy and still wear it to this day
I wear it around the house, to bed and yes, I've even worn it in public
I love my grey sweatshirt and its worth all the heckles and comments from my siblings and husband
It's comfortable
It knows me
It appreciates me
It's forgiven me for the food and drink I've spilled on it, the bodily fluids its been covered in (Lucy's) and think I may have even thrown up on it myself
It's lasted longer than any relationship I've ever had with a man....including my husband
My grey sweatshirt brings me the comfort of a hug

I find great comfort in Mass
As I've said before, I go for me
Not for anyone else 
Not because I was raised to go to Mass
Not because I'm, trying to impress anyone
Not because I'm trying to secure a spot in heaven
Not because someone told me I have to go
I go to Mass because it grounds me
It restores in me humility, fortitude, patience, love, and acceptance
The music soothes me, the readings inspire me and the homilies challenge me
Mass, prayers, faith...it's been a bigger comfort than I ever thought it could be

I find great comfort in the law
I like knowing there are laws to govern our land - saves us from Chaos
This is not to say the people making the laws, passing the laws, enforcing the laws are necessarily a comfort
But the laws themselves, the rules, even the ones I may not necessairly agree with, are comforting
And just because I like laws and rules does not mean I can;t think for myself
It does not mean I'm a sheep
It does not mean I am against free will
It means I find comfort in order
It means that I find comfort in knowing that there is a certain level of respect being afforded to all of us
And it means we're all on even footing because the laws, like it or not, apply to all of us regardless of anything or anyone

I find comfort in writing, music, and art
Books, poems, songs, stories, portraits, paintings, letters, jokes, editorials, letters to the editor, diary entries, scripts
Without words, we'd have no history, no future, no Harry Potter, no Shel Silerstein, no US Weekly
Without words, you'd never have known about the time I had a moth caught in my bra and I thought I was having a heart attack, or about the time I went to work with my pants on backwards, or how Lucy took comfort in knowing Jet is in the stars with Mufasa
Without music, there would be no dancing with Lucy, no hearing her sing, no singing with her
Without music, there would be no John Williams, no Tears for Fears, be no loving a rainy night thanks to Eddie Rabbit
And where would The Gambler be but on a train bound for no where....
Without art, we'd never know Mona Lisa has a secret or how beautiful a Starry Starry Night is and we would have missed the Cornonation of Napoleon
Without the arts, all the arts, the world would be a bit duller, a bit darker and a whole lot less entertaining
No movies to get lost in, no books to travel in, no songs to commemorate that special day, no photos to capture the love in a mother's eyes for her child

Lastly, I take comfort in this unspecified, unnamed thing, this object I can't quite identify....
I think it's a role I play...
Sean's wife
Lucy's mother
My parent's daughter
Sister to my brother and sisters
Aunt to my nieces and nephews
A daughter-in-law, a sister-in-law, a cousin
A friend to people who have chosen me to be a part of their life
I take great comfort in knowing there is a purpose to my life - a purpose that though I may sometimes lose sight of always shows itself when I need it most
I take comfort in knowing that I'm needed, and knowing I need others as much as they need me
I find comfort in giving love, hugs, kisses and band aids whenever any of it is needed
I find comfort in making other people smile, making them laugh, making them forget for a few minutes about their shit day or their sick Dad or their ailing sibling
I take comfort in knowing that my bad day is just that, a day
And tomorrow I have a chance to do it again
And even if I don't,
I find comfort in knowing the world is a better place because I was here long enough to give it Lucy

And chocolate
I find a whole lot of comfort in any form of chocolate

Maria the Mum