>Be Evan.

>Be gardening with mother out front, summer after 6th grade.

>Evan usually doesn't like working outside like this, but for some reason today he does.

>Jason and his father have gone to the shooting range. Evan doesn't like guns. Never has. Evan's dad doesn't seem to mind— he has Jason to share in the hobby with.

>Getting dirt between his fingers is strangely satisfying this time, and Evan's hands are caked with it. There's dirt underneath his fingernails, something he usually can't stand.

>His mother is on her knees, weeding.

>Maddie, a mouthy two-year old, is gurgling in the grass behind them, babbling to herself and playing with two matchbox cars she's found.

>Alfred the black lab is snoozing in the shade over by a tree, keeping an eye on Maddie and blinking flies away.

>Evan is following behind his mother, digging little holes and placing Queen Anne's Lace in them.

>They already have about half the garden done, it's a major improvement over the weed-choked pit it used to be.

>His mother has taken it upon herself to clean the place up for the first time since they've lived there.

>She usually never has the time because of her work schedule and taking care of Maddie, but today she's decided to use her day off and tend the garden.

>I like this, Evan says to his mother out of nowhere. He just feels like it's something he needs to say.

>His mother smiles at him.

>I like it, too. I don't know why we waited this long.

>They work a bit more, Evan digging a hole with the trowel, then squeezing a patch of flowers from the plastic tray, burying the roots and smoothing the dirt.

>You know why this is fun?

>Why?

>Cause it's simple.

>Oh.

>Enjoy the simple things, says his mother, as she tosses another bundle of weeds into the wagon behind her.

>The little things. Like how your hands feel right now, with all the dirt on them? Notice how refreshing it'll feel when you get to wash that dirt off. That's a simple thing. Enjoy the simple things. Cause if you notice the simple things, you'll start to notice that there's a lot of them.

>I don't mind the dirt on my hands, says Evan.

>It matters more the older you get, his mother says. If you can't enjoy the simple things, you won't be able to enjoy anything.