Zucchini and apples from the Odenwald! (and cell phone for size)

Today started out like a normal Monday. Wiping the weekend sleep from my eyes, not wanting to put my book back in my bag when the train stopped at work, going through the leftover to-dos on last week’s list.

Then my co-worker showed up at my desk with a Whole Foods bag. One of the members of our team lives in London but comes to the Frankfurt office twice a month. When she heard the sad story of my birthday box, she told me that the UK now has Whole Foods stores and asked me to send her my list. So, this morning, she dropped off a jar of real almond butter and a little jug of lemon-flavored fish oil. You would’ve thought I won the lottery! Finally! Properly smuggled some contraband into this country. I forgot how good almond butter tasted. I’ve eaten almost half of the jar. Unfortunately, fish oil still tastes the same.

When our afternoon meeting ran long, I knew I wasn’t going to make it to the gym (or as I call it, my afternoon zen time). I texted my gym pal, telling her I wouldn’t be able to work out with her, as we had planned earlier.

Taking the late train home, in between early evening rain showers, I saw a rainbow. It was a reminder of my commitment to practice gratitude today. Stop. Look. Go.

My friend stopped by after the gym. She dropped off apples and a HUGE zucchini from her family’s garden in the Odenwald. As if that wasn’t enough, she also had homemade apfel streusselkeuchen (apple crumb cake). I made some tea and stood in the kitchen with my almond butter, fish oil, zucchini, apples, and, yes, cake. Grateful. And happy as a clam.

Some Mondays aren’t so bad after all.