If you have the everlasting-winter blues, this one's for you.

On Saturday I decided to take a little stroll through the ward in Guelph. I was ecstatic at the fact that it was warm enough for my bare hands to be out of their mittens for 15 minutes at a time. I took photos of houses with chipping paint and dead grass - and I was excited, even if it was because of the frigid wind in my hair and the dirty snow under my feet. After a few minutes I found a sign.

A man came up to me and asked what I was taking a photo of. I told him. He told me how he had put it up many years ago with environmental news and postings but had to stop because of vandalism. He seemed distraught about reliving the memory. So I nodded - mostly in silence. I complimented him on his choice of words and told him how much I liked it. He seemed thankful, but sad. 

And then he caught me off guard. He said “I wish people would think less of killing themselves”, and with that, turned to walk away without another word. In the time it took me to process what he had said, he was already at his front door. I wanted so much to say something, but words escaped me.

I found them 10 minutes later when I stumbled upon the resilience festival in downtown Guelph. This is what I saw.

A chalkboard full of wonderful things. The Simple Pleasures Project, to be exact. An idea thought up by Josh Martin, leukemia survivor and, evidently, experience enthusiast (you can see what he's all about here). We chatted briefly, I told him how great it was, and proudly added “Hugs and Cuddles” before I left (sunshine, taking my shoes off, DOGGIES more than once, and a picture of a unicorn were already on the board, so I decided to choose something different). It was uplifting to see. Something I wished the man I had encountered 10 minutes earlier could have seen. To put even the tiniest of smiles on his face.

So, on the hard days, just remember: When things get rough, there’s a chalkboard somewhere waiting to tell you what’s good.

There’s also (in no particular order) doggies, unicorns, sloths, photographs, snuggles, bananas, hammocks (note: not banana hammocks, but maybe. depending on who you are), heated blankets, walking barefoot, treetops, treehouses, campfires (CAMP), canoes, wide-open fields, lakes, sunsets, mountains, waterfalls, hikes, pets in costumes, really awful puns, friends who laugh at my awful puns, and friends who prevail over time, space and circumstance. Just to name a few.

What’s on your list? (Seriously, I want to know. Don’t be shy.)

There's also big windows and ivy!