At the bottom of my garden there is a pale blue shed, In the pale blue shed there is a pale green bike with a basket on the front, and on the handlebars of the pale green bike with the basket on the front, is a bright pink bell with a daisy on top. Oh how I love that bell. I can still remember the sheer joy I felt when I opened the brown package and saw it drop onto my bed. And no it wasnt my 10th birthday but my 50th!
Having never had a new bike in my life, and being affectionately named ‘Second hand Ali’ by my first serious boyfriend I thought it was high time I treated myself, and what a proud purchase it was. Receiving that bell as a gift on my birthday was the ‘icing on the cake’ or should I say ‘the bell on the bike’.
This post however isn’t about the bike, or about the person who sent that package, it’s about that pink bell and all it stood for. It’s about the little things in life that can so often turn out to be the things that mean the most. Giving us an overwhelming sense of joy, and creating the best of memories.
That pink bell with the daisy on the top stood for 3 things to me
- I know you.
- I’ve put some thought into this.
- I know what will make you smile.
We often say it’s ‘the thought that counts’, It’s a phrase that is often used in jest when a gift has been misplaced or forgotten, but for me it’s definitely the thought behind things that can mean far more than the object itself, and can make a seemingly insignificant gift seem of much greater value.
Of course it’s not just about gifts. Some of my most precious memories are made up of small moments that mean a lot to me. The flower picked from the ground on a walk with my man, the decoupaged flower-pot that my daughter sat up making late into the night, the unexpected christmas stocking filled with love ‘ The night Santas elves filled my stocking! ‘, the breakfast cooked on mother’s day by two very grown up sons, or the words on a mother’s day card this year that yes, kind of brought a tear to my eye.
It’s these little moments of thoughtfulness, kindness and honesty that make life worthwhile, and make me so thankful for the life I have forged for myself and the lives i have had a part in creating.
But it’s not just the small family moments that are special, it’s the small unexpected things that happen in our day that can mean so much because they took just a little extra thought. For me it’s the lady down the road who constantly stops and asks me how im doing, even though I hardly know her. It’s the unexpected call from a friend on a day that you may feel a little alone, or the person who gives you their ticket in a parking lot without expecting any payment in return. It’s these little momentary gestures that have taken just a little bit of extra effort that have the greatest value.
Our lives are made up of thousands upon thousands of moments, it’s up to us how we use them and which ones we log as memories and keep close to our hearts, but im quite sure that for many of us it will be the ‘small bicycle bells on the handlebars of the pale green bike with a basket on, in the pale blue shed’, moments that turn out to be the best. Ding! Ding!
Love Alison x
Through rose tinted glasses. 
What a beautiful post.
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Thank you, im glad you enjoyed reading it.
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Beautiful post. And it’s so true. Giving someone something that means something to them, however small, really shows your friendship.
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Thank you for reading. Yes its do often the small things that mean the most.
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Beauty to begin my day, and it ties into my current post, along with the one before it. Great minds think alike. 🙂 Have a blessed Sunday.
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Ah thank you, ill have a read later. Happy Sunday to you too .
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I love that bike bell. If I was a bee I could sit there and enjoy the ride! Yes little thoughtful actions are so lovely in our life’s. I adore flowers, poems, pocket hankies with embroidered corners, ornate buttons, knitted toys and jars of honey. I like saying good morning and waving at neighbours. I love your leather bike handles too. That’s a bike that will take you on journies.
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It hasnt been out in a while since i hurt my back . But hopefully there will be some summer rides this year. The bell was a rather sweet gift.
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Ah another soul to understand bad backs. How did you get yours?
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I fell downstairs 18 months ago, a lot of soft tissue bruising and whiplash which has left me really limited and with a lot of nerve pain. Improving gradually all the time but its been very slow progress.
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I had falls over the years and now have rather chronic arthritis setting in. Anything below waist level gets me in a sweat…tissue on floor…it just has to stay there till I am brave enough to bare the twinches!
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Oh no that sounds awful. I am gradually getting stronger, i am trying to go swimming now and am beginning to enjoy it but it wears me out for the next day or so. Im just having to pace myself but life has been very frustrating. Blogging has been a godsend.
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Hi, I found you in the reader under another bike blog I follow, Capejohn. Thanks for your post, sorry for your fall… having knee pain that probably means I should stop biking but it’s my ride, exercise and therapy, so hard to quit or even take time off. I recently wrote a blog post about the little pains and pleasures of biking, feel free to visit and read it.
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Im glad you enjoyed my post, I will visit yours very soon . Thankyou for your kind comment.
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Thanks for following my blog. How did you find it? Where are you? I’m not great at reading as I’d like but I am trying to finish my book. Keep up the good work!
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