A Good Day by Kevin Henkes

A Good Day by Kevin Henkes

Rating: 5 stars

Another simple book with a simple message: bad days can turn into good ones.  One by one Henkes introduces an animal that is having a not-so-hot day.  A dog gets tangled up in his leash; a squirrel dropped a nut.  "But then..." writes Henkes "The little white dog gets himself untangled and runs in circles through the dandelions."  And of the squirrel: "He found the biggest nut ever!"

What a great thing to teach our kids: don't worry, this bad-ness will pass, and good-ness will be sure to follow (hopefully sooner rather than later!).

Little yellow bird lost his favorite tail feather.
Little yellow bird forgot about his tail feather, and flew higher than he ever had before.

I think, though, that in real life there is often some in-between action, some stuff that happens after the bad and before the good.  It's called pulling yourself up and turning the day around all by yourself.  Wouldn't it be grand to be able to always count on someone else to do that job...a spouse, a friend, a child, even my trusty ol' mutt?  But I think we should take charge of our own happiness, and know how to cheer up ourselves.

I needed some cheering up mid-day today, and though I take full credit for making myself happy, I had some help in the form of a fairly adorable little toddler who thinks I am the funniest person in the whole world.  While the big kids were totally engrossed in whoknowswhat after lunch, I turned up Louis Prima on my iPod and he and I danced like crazy to some old jazz/swing music that never fails to lighten my mood.  My hair was up in a wild ponytail at the top of my head, spilling all over my face as we shimmied and scooted around.  He giggled, and I smiled, dancing like goofballs.  Thankfully, only the trees could see in from the windows, and I think they approved.

So, yes, like this sweet little book, my day is ending well.