My goodness the weeks are flying by now that summer’s abandoned us. But there’s still time to stop and recognize a smile or two.

I usually have plenty of things to smile about, so choosing just one each week can be hard. But this week it was obvious to me what my smile post should be about. And it’s music.

Those of you that know me know I fell last August and broke a finger on my right hand. Six weeks later I’m still doing physical therapy, and I see my hand doctor tomorrow morning for more ex-rays.

My physical therapist says there is progress, but it’s frustratingly hard for me to see. I do know the pain has lessened, almost down to zero some of the time, while other times it catches me by surprise as it throbs.

Still, I’m not in a cast or a splint any more. I do my exercises at home, attend my therapy sessions, try not to jam the finger into anything during the day and wrap it up to protect it at night.

And this past Tuesday I attended my first band rehearsal of this season in the hopes that I could play at least a little bit that night. Two hours flew by and my finger was never a problem except for a certain extended trill with a base note of C. Not going to lie, I won’t be playing that at the concert. But the rest of it? Oh yea, I’ll be there.

And that made me smile.