The art of surprising yourself

There is no surprise like one you leave for yourself. Perhaps it is the chicken salad sandwich you left in your purse several days ago because you decided to eat a granola bar instead, the sweaty socks you crammed into the recesses of your backpack after basketball practice last Tuesday, the roll of dollar bills you accidentally left in the medicine cabinet the last time you were looking for band-aids.

Why wait for others to leave you surprises when you can take care of it yourself? Save a slice of cake and hide it behind the leftovers in your refrigerator. Stow a couple of quarters into a bag you've forgotten you had. By the time you rummage through the leftovers from last week, or unearth that bag again during spring cleaning, that cake, those quarters will have become gifts, far exceeding their original value. The delight and self-congratulation that comes with these discoveries, the certainty that there are more blessings to stumble across and the freshness of suddenly looking forward to the day ahead. You are charmed, all because you thought to keep a few coins buried away.

Then again, there are surprises you probably don't want to leave for yourself. Overdue phone bills, smelly laundry, fingernail clippings, unrefrigerated ice cream, expired gift cards. The homework assignment you accidentally left between the pages of your biology textbook and did not find until the morning it was due. The coupon for free yogurt you finally collected enough stamps on but never got around to using until it was too late. These surprises spring out from nowhere and pound away at your optimism and measure of self-worth. At these moments, you lament the loss of free yogurt and the curse of your own forgetfulness.

Until you find the surprise you left for yourself in the medicine cabinet, and the world is right once more.