Euphoria – An Emotion to Treasure

I must admit, it doesn’t take much for me to feel euphoric. I was anxious about a recent dental exam. Since I took a lot of antibiotics the first part of the year and wasn’t in great health, I imagined those months might have negatively impacted my teeth. Euphoria set in the moment the dentist told me he couldn’t find a thing wrong. He’d see me again in six months. All apprehension melted away as I sat in the dentist chair. My elation continued as I sang in the car all the way home—a great mood enhancer I tend to forget. Trust me, I don’t sing well. The car is about the only audience that sticks around to hear me out—it doesn’t have a choice!

We recently took two of our grandchildren to see the Nethercutt Museum in Sylmar, California. I told the kids it was just like the L.A. auto show except, instead of seeing the latest in car design, they were looking at the oldest.

Two things made the trip especially exciting for me. A 1905 Buick was a featured car in the “showroom”—an opulent display of how luxury car dealerships appeared in the 20s and 30s. I highlighted that auto in one of my upcoming books—Catching Nettie Gordon. I did a lot of research both on-line and from written accounts of early automobile travel. Both seeing the car and walking around it were thrilling to me. I learned so much from that experience, including the fact I made two rather blatant errors. After all, you can’t lean against a front-seat door if the car didn’t have them! I also never realized, as is often the case with early autos, the driver sat on the right, just as a wagon driver does. While these tidbits seem obvious when looking at my photo, they’re harder to pick up in small on-line pictures of the whole car.

Another find was the Regina Music boxes, also featured in the Nettie book. I’d never seen one in person and the docent gave helpful information. I may not be completely able to understand what it was like to live in other times but I try to give my reader as close to that experience as I can. After viewing a few other cars referenced in my books close-up, I left the museum floating on air.

It really is possible to find joy in the simple things of life. I don’t know why it seems so easy to slip into unpleasant moods. Maybe I need to better document and remember those euphoric moments in life.

My garden gives me a lot of enjoyment. There are always surprises. I should spend more time outside. I can’t grow hydrangeas to save my soul but I found a pretty good substitute. Guess what this is? A carrot flower! Who would have thought?

Imagine my surprise when my plumeria tree started off blooming even before it got leaves this summer! The smell is divine.

And below is my first ever artichoke. Well, I’m not counting the one I planted last year and pulled out because I thought it was a weed. We’ll just keep that between us.

What’s made you euphoric lately? Be sure to share your experience in a comment. We all need as many helpful hints as we can get!