My New Wall Art: Puzzles, Books, & Friends

I love putting together puzzles every Christmas. It's become a tradition in our family. Recently, someone I met through the Southern Magic Readers Luncheon and online wanted to meet me in person. She had a present for me that she thought I'd appreciate.

I couldn't meet Carol empty handed, so I brought her a gift as well.

I put together an author tote bag with a personalized author post it note pad. She'll be getting a copy of THE MAVERICK'S RED HOT REUNION when it debuts in June 2014 from Entangled Publishing.

Carol Bibb sent me a little picture of her gift. A puzzle that she'd glued together and framed. It has all kinds of cool titles on it. More about that later. The Physicist and I drove down to Birmingham a couple of weeks ago so I could attend the meeting and visit with my chapter mates. We stopped just outside of Birmingham to meet Carol and her husband at a McDonald's parking lot.

Carol Bibb and me at the McDonald's parking lot. Isn't that picture super cool?

We had such a lovely meeting. I smiled all day. Carol is a wonderful, beautiful person. I'm glad we got to visit .

Sometimes people do special things and they don't even realize how much they impact other people's lives. I lost a dear friend on March 4th and I was heartbroken. But meeting Carol and her husband just outside of Birmingham brought me such joy. I truly appreciated this gift, not just the puzzle picture, but the person who took the time to think of me and give my spirits a lift. 

I put the puzzle picture smack dab in the center of my Happy Wall. Every morning when I sit down to write, I look at this and smile all over again.

Acts of kindness and generosity can make a difference in people's lives. This one sure did make one on me and reminded me about what is important in life. Bring joy to others and you will be given the same in turn.

How do you bring joy to other people? Did anyone ever surprise you with a random act of kindness on a day that you really needed to be reminded about what is good in this world?