Humans Are Prone to Negativity Bias. But Some Days, It's Hard to Find.

Hi. Welcome to Bloom Anywhere. I'm Gwen Moran, a writer, editor, author, and problem-solver. My goal is to share information, ideas, and resources to help you overcome obstacles, reach your goals, and find more joy in life, even when things are messy. Thanks for joining me. (If you got this from a friend, subscribe here.) I'd love your feedback and suggestions for future topics. Please send me an email at connect@bloomanywhere.com.

When someone says, “It’s one of those days,” we immediately know what they mean. One of those days is when all the things, large and small, go wrong. Death by a thousand irritating, time-sucking, soul-crushing cuts.

This weekend, I was caught up in a stretch of time so happy and sparkly that I felt like someone had charmed my path. The opposite of “one of those days” is “the perfect 36 hours.”

Months ago, I had offered to accompany my daughter on her trip to run the DC Half, which you probably guessed is a half-marathon through Washington, DC. I typically relish any time spent with her and this was an opportunity for us to have two long car rides and hours in between to catch up and enjoy each other’s company.

A couple of challenges cropped up along the way. First, a serious downturn in my father’s health, which was touch-and-go for a few days. Then, there was the issue of exactly how I’d be able to get around the city, given that the portion I would mostly be visiting would be shut down for the marathon. How far could I walk? But my father had improved, and my knees were feeling okay. I had to go.

Luck, or Something Like It

We hit a little traffic on the way down, which made us late for our first stop: my dear friend’s annual henna party. Monica Saigal is an author, chef, creative, and so much more. She’s invited me to her party a number of times over the 20 years she’s been hosting it, but this was the first time that our schedules aligned. It was a magical time. We made fragrances, learned how to make a lotus flower bloom, ate wonderful food, got henna designs, and caught up with a room full of women who were there to support each other and celebrate Monica’s new book, The Lotus Blooms Twice.

After a good night’s sleep, my daughter left early to walk over to the race. I caught a cab a couple of hours later—and this is where things got strange. You might even say “charmed.”

When I mentioned that I have bad knees, the kind cab driver was determined to get me as close as he could to the finish line, despite the many street closures, finally dropping me near the breathtaking Lincoln Memorial and giving me specific directions to get to my destination. I walked by the memorial and through a wooded area. I had time, so I decided to stop for a bit and sit on a bench. At that moment, there was a downpour. The woman on the bench next to me and I looked at each other with surprise. Aside from a few drops, the rain was barely reaching us. The tree canopy kept us (mostly) dry.

“How is this even happening?” she asked.

“I have no idea,” I replied.

When the rain stopped, I decided to press on to find the finish line. What I didn’t know was that I would have to cross an earlier point in the race first. I decided to see if she would be, by some coincidence, passing soon. I found a tree trunk that made a perfect seat. Although I had no idea where she was on the route, my 10 minutes of waiting paid off: One of the runners began cheering and hyping up the crowd. I looked over at him, and my daughter was two runners behind him. I got to see her on the course!

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Now, I was anxious to make it to the finish line. I started to walk, but two women asked me if I was looking for the finish line and then redirected me to a shortcut. Through that pathway, I came upon the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, which was jolt of inspiration and motivation. I kept walking and found the park. I waited by the finish line and saw her cross, triumphant. She was feeling good and had beaten her time from last year.

I walked to the FDR Memorial to sit in the shade as she took some photos with friends who were there. As I waited for her, I had a long and lovely conversation with a man whose son is in college. We compared notes about our children’s alma maters, which are very similar. While we were there, a runner had left her phone and wallet behind. When another runner realized it, we all agreed that she should turn it in to the memorial staff. A few minutes later, the frantic runner returned, and the small group who were sitting at the memorial entrance reassured her that everything was waiting for her inside. She and her partner were effusive with their thanks to all of us.

My daughter emerged. She and her friends were going to lunch, but I was tired and wanted to go back to the hotel. I backtracked my path and found a cab waiting. The driver and I had a long talk about what a peaceful world would look like. When I got back to the hotel, I changed into my swimsuit and made my way down to the pool—which was open two weeks later than expected. I swam just under a mile with the pool all to myself. My daughter arrived back at the hotel, and we hunkered down to rest and rehash the day. After a supper of some of the best Thai food I’ve ever had, we woke very early yesterday and made our way back to New Jersey.

After a very difficult few weeks, it was exactly the break I needed.

What We Miss When We're Not Looking (for the Good)

During that time together, everything seemed to go our way. Aside from our time together, we also had time doing our own activities to recharge. When I returned back to our room, the housekeeper was walking out of the room, having just finished cleaning it. When we needed to move up our dinner reservation, we had our choice of any time we wanted. Perhaps I should have remembered to buy a lottery ticket.

I realize this reads like a luck-soaked laundry list of activities. But as I walked and waited, I was also struck by how everything about the day had gone our way. Monica and I have talked before about the reticular activating system. While I’m quick to lament days that don’t go well, I thought back to how many times I may have taken for granted the ease of a good day. This was a good reminder to savor them instead.

What Was Your Last Very Good Day?

Have you had a day recently when everything went your way? I’d love to hear about it. Let’s keep that focus front and center, so we’re attuned to looking for the good. My email is always open: connect@bloomanywhere.com.