My necklace makes me happy today.

Life is complicated and there are so many reasons not to be happy; or maybe I should say there are so many reasons to be frazzled, worried, confused, upset or tired. I try to find little things throughout the day that perk me up and make me smile.

And this necklace, well, this necklace makes me smile.

Why do I love it so?

Let’s start with the basics. Yakir, my 8 year old, made it for me. But you know when your kid makes you jewelry and he’s so excited about it…and then there is the big reveal?

And you say “Oh! Wow! That’s um, that’s so colorful. And big. And decorative. I can’t wait to wear it!”

While you’re thinking – Oh my gosh I’m going to look like a lit up Christmas tree in that five pound thing.

“Oh I love it!”

And then you wear it around the house, hoping that the child doesn’t notice that you are never.wearing.that.thing.outside.

Or you do wear it outside, and you love it (you really love it) but it’s pretty obvious that it’s an art project from your child.

So when Yakir came home from camp one day last summer and said that he had made me a necklace, I got ready for one of “those” moments.

Instead, I got this:

I just couldn’t believe how beautiful it was. It looks earthy and authentic and real (well, because it is all of those things) and it has just the right weight to it without feeling too bulky.

It’s a stone from Eretz Yisrael which makes it that much more beautiful and significant to me.

To top all of that off, he somehow sanded down the stone so that it’s smooth and has these two cool ridges on either side that really add to the look of it.

It’s just wonderful.

When I put it on this morning, I just had to smile and it’s been making me smile all day.

The best part, however, will be when he gets home and says (again), “You’re wearing my necklace!” with that mixture of awe, pride and gratitude.

Yes, it’s the little things in life that often need our focus – and that help us to put everything else into focus in our lives.

At least momentarily.