Who needs a bucket list?

If anyone ever asked me what I wanted, I'd be lost for an answer. The thing is, I simply want to be connected to the world around me. That may ultimately include complexities not yet envisioned, but for right now, it just means I'm pretty content to just enjoy whatever comes along.

To me, all things in life are all about connections. Whether it is a phone call from my kids on Mother's Day, my husband saying thanks when I make him dinner, or the Saturday morning tradition of hearing from my best friend, I relish the people connections in my life.

It would be difficult to make a list of what I want because most of the time, I don't want anything. My bucket is smaller than a vintage soda bottle top. At other times, my wants encompass the entire universe. I guess it all depends on the day. 

On this day, I satisfied one desire that might have been listed in that tiny bottle cap. 

It had rained overnight and throughout the weekend. We got between 4 and 4.5 inches of rain, something we definitely needed. The ground hasn't yet made up the deficit from past drought conditions. In addition, I had just planted my garden, which could always use a good rain. 

I absolutely love rainy days, so I was already in pretty good spirits when I woke up this morning. Sleep was especially dreamy. I always keep the windows open, even when it rains--no--especially when it rains. I like to hear the sound of the rain, but even more importantly, when it rains a lot, the dry creek in the backyard makes the most beautiful music. As water rushes over some of the rocks that have been around for thousands of years, it moves others out of its way, constantly and deliberately making its way toward the river miles away. 

I've always heard it, but I've never seen it, at least until this morning. I always wanted to, but just never did. The creek bed is in the middle of our property, at its lowest point. The land on both sides slopes toward it. The woods are pretty dense with all the trees fully leafed. I always assumed the path to the creek would be muddy and messy, tick-infested, and perhaps there would be an abundance of snakes trying to escape the water-soaked ground. I had no desire to encounter them! The best time to hear the creek, would be while it is still raining or very shortly after it stopped, while the water-logged hills were still draining. 

I'm not sure why I never went out to where the water rushes. Watching water flow is one of my favorite things. I love water, though I have a healthy respect for it. Our little creek running is basically just a natural drainage ditch, which in periods of heavy rain becomes a flash flood, something I never really experienced before. I lived my entire life in a flat topography, where drainage issues were often times engineered. Oh, how I have grown to love the dramatic elevations here! 

My husband has labeled our creek, 'Bout Time Creek.' One day after a night of rain we heard it. He said it was 'bout time. The name just stuck.