Brian called me from upstairs while he was putting Riley to bed. It always makes me laugh when he does this – as if we have this high tech walkie talkie thing going on. He told me to run outside, that the moon was happening.

Julia, Nate, Mary Alice, and I ran outside. All of our neighbors were outside with telescopes and cameras. It was so fun to stand outside together and laugh and talk. I just love our neighbors.

I wandered back inside and Brian met us at the door. “Hurry – get your camera – I’ve got Mary Alice.”

It only took a few minutes, but soon I had a tripod set up in the backyard. I usually try to keep things pretty low key at night so that Mary Alice settles in for sleep. I couldn’t remember how to use the remote trigger for the camera and I couldn’t see very well to change my settings. I made a few attempts to get an image and started to feel rushed. I was giving up. I wasn’t upset, I just told myself that I am in a different season right now.

I turned around and Brian was standing there with a flashlight and a glass of wine. “What is the name of your remote? I’ll google it for you.”

We spent the next ten very special minutes being a team. He made me laugh and played the Godspell soundtrack on my phone.

He encouraged me and we cheered when I finally got it. We never did figure out the remote, but his efforts made me so happy.

This little burst of quality time reminded me that ten minutes is all we need sometimes to flourish.

Because of this investment in me, my efforts went from this:

to this:

Those ten minutes of thoughtfulness made me feel loved and encouraged and so very special.

So today, I’ll be on the lookout for someone who needs my ten minutes.