Concord Grapes

Not much in particular is going on lately. I just wanted to write. Sometimes I feel like I should always have something special to say. But sometimes it's the little things that add up to the ultimate experience. It's 11:15 at night and I should be sleeping. These are the thoughts that run through my mind: my snoozing wife next to me, my friend biking across the country (probably as I write this), my brother-in-law learning trad climbing in Colorado, aching legs, my belly button in the light of the computer, fried chicken from the window, my parents' new adventure with their property, my sister and her family.

I decided that eating concord grapes was the highlight of my day today. I have an hour break in the afternoon between classes and I usually spend it in the main office of my department at school. When I came in today, someone had brought in a big bunch of concord grapes, the ones I'm pretty sure most grape juice is made of. I don't know if I've ever had concord grapes plain. I also don't know if I've ever enjoyed grapes so much. All I'd had for lunch was a leftover salad from the night before, so I was still a little hungry. I ended up eating most of the bunch while I sat and read a Time magazine that someone had left in there.

Life is simple here, but somehow we find ways to make it complex. Only when I slow down enough to hear the gentle chirp of the crickets outside my window does the world return to its natural state. And I am at peace again.
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