The one true cookie moment

Last week it was my good pleasure to go to a birthday bloggerette bash, and to eat at P.F. Chang's. When our meal was ended (and may I heartily recommend their decadent desserts, but only one per half dozen people or you could die from bliss) and the fortune cookies were passed around, mine predicted:

LUCK WILL VISIT YOU ON THE NEXT FULL MOON

Now. I am not the superstitious type, generally speaking, but I am a great fancier of fortune cookies. Have you ever seen my collection of the little lucky receipts? I've got more than probably anybody else you know, or ever will. Last time I taught in Young Women, I made fortune cookies for the girls out of felt (it was a Fast Sunday lesson) to make one of my points (which actually had very little to do with superstitious activity). Ask me sometime. I'll spill out my piggy bank full of fortunes for you, like a reading library.

Anyway.

I got that fortune a few days ago and decided right away I'd better find out when the next full moon was on—hey! less than a week to wait!—it was/is tonight. So I've been thinking the past few days what great serendipitous event might occur. I've been speculating. A little eager to find out what lovely surprise was going to fall out of the sky.

But hold on, that cookie was non-committal. Who's to say it didn't mean bad luck? I mean, I'm glad that as long as I'm being superstitious, if I'm erring, I'm erring on the side of optimism. My cookie is half-full, not half-empty. Or sump'n.

So since I got up this morning I've been keeping a tally. Bad, good, luck here, luck there. Luck, luck, everywhere. Now that January 7th is on the wane, I feel obligated somehow to identify today's one true cookie revelation, for better or worse.

What's it going to be then? What do I vote on? I'll start with the bad luck, as I like to always get bad news out of the way first. Save the best bites for last, you know.

BAD LUCK
• woke up with a kink in my back at not quite 5:45 a.m. and knew sleep was prematurely over
• broken toe has been bugging me
• Guru's gal took a perfectly fresh, clean card out of my hand and gave me somebody else's skanky, creased, recycled frequent diners card when I asked her for two entree stamps
• bad episode of Stargate SG-1
• bad episode of brain chemistry (was the full moon confederate?)
• sky too overcast tonight to see the full moon
• car died on me while I was out shopping and the alarm system went berserk (hey, everyone! look at me!)

GOOD LUCK
• got lots done on the history I'm working on because I got up so early
• one pound ahead of schedule this morning on my El Paso weight-loss program
• Jeanne remembered our hoodoo appointment, even when I did not
• Rob was okay with a buzz cut
• was able to help a nervous friend take care of some legal errands
• Rob's first class of the semester was still on when I went to pick him up—got to see him teaching and quietly play paparazzi
• finished crocheting a wool and silk beanie
• scored some incredible fabric and a nice piece of leather from a bookbinder
• a yummy late lunch at Guru's (try the Black and Bleu wrap)
• got to hear The Cure—"Boys Don't Cry"
• found two black wool sweaters I like, second-hand (1 + 1 = $7)
• transcription foot pedal arrived from Honolulu today and works great
• more ideas about field trips for "Mrs. Cooper"—my literal old school tape recorder, one of my oral history machines
• found a second-hand tote bag with a conscience for Mrs. Cooper and her stuff
• Rob's care when I was agitated for no apparent reason
• Anna's coming in May!
• studied about the First Vision and felt an affinity for Joseph Smith when he was struggling with nasty opposing forces
• pretty good episode of Stargate SG-1
• knew there was a full moon tonight, thanks to the cookie
• a sweet compliment left on my blog
• email from the guppy
• nice kisses

I don't believe I could have chosen the one true cookie moment from among all those contenders, so it was good that the Beautiful Thing, the luck I'd been waiting for, announced itself so clearly and unmistakably this afternoon. It came to me minutes after I'd dropped off my friend-in-trouble at her work after our lunch hour legal chase. I was on my way then to the letterpress lab to pick up Rob and I turned on the radio. One of my favoritest, greatest, happiest songs came on—"(I'm Gonna Be) 500 Miles" by none other than The Proclaimers. It never fails to make me smile and sing and no doubt entertain the people in neighboring lanes of traffic. I was in full-tilt appreciation mode when suddenly I heard, in the middle of that silly noisy song, sure as anything, the beautiful quiet whisper of the Spirit speaking to me: This is how he feels about you. I was stunned by the feeling—so deep, so insistent, so warm, so gripping. A love note from the Spirit, or from Rob? Which? Both. This is exactly how Rob feels. About you.I started to cry, but kept on singing anyhow. And when the Proclaimers had finished proclaiming, I turned the radio immediately off. I didn't want anything else to be in my mind but that sweet communication.

Some things have gone really wrong in my life. More things have gone right. Above all else, I am very, very lucky in love. Turns out that fortune cookie was preaching to the choir.