The picture and the title of this post may seem not to go together, but they do. How can an Italian sausage be a miracle of life? While it is…and then again it isn’t. Confused yet? Let us clear all of this up and show you how every day can feel like a miracle. The Italian sausage stand pictured above exists at the Wisconsin State Fair. Anyone who knows me, or follows this blog, knows that is one of my happy places on earth. As you can see by the sign, it has been there since 1932. That is almost 100 years. The owner even wrote an amazing book about the Wisconsin State Fair. Their sausages are so delicious, that I make a point to have one at least once a year. They were available in select stores, but nothing tastes as good as having one fresh off of their unique vertical grill!

If you noticed I did you the past tense to describe their availability at the stores. The reason being is that without warning, it was announced they would no longer be in business. The family that owned, and served these delights, was calling it quits. On the second to last day of the fair, my mother and I got one to share. As we sat enjoying it together we mentioned how we must get one the next day before they were gone forever. As the next day came, Margie, my mother and I approached the stand to enjoy one last, mouth-watering Millie’s Italian Sausage. What we were told broke our hearts, they had sold out. There would be no more to be had. They had sold out in the store as well. Unknown to us at the time, that sausage we had enjoyed the night prior would be the last we would ever have.

Another owner has bought them out and will supposedly keep the same recipe, but we all know how that can go. Here is the thing, we were not expecting that to be the last one we would ever eat and would have savored it more had we known. This touching story about a man and his sausage is but merely a microcosm of the world at large. In a world of fast-paced change, so many things, and people, can be here today and gone tomorrow. Each moment is special and a miracle in its own way. When you think of how many people, places and things change, tomorrow is always new and different. That means today is always unique and a miracle.

In the United States, today we are reflecting on the terrorist events that took the lives of 3000 innocent people in 2001. None of those people expected not to make it home that day. The loved ones they left behind will remember the last moments they spent together as a miracle. It may not have been appreciated or viewed as such at the time, but that is what it was. We never know when our world will upend our lives. It happens to people every second of every day. That is why we must realize that every second is a miracle. As I sit in Starbucks writing this and sending messages to my lovely Fiancé, I realize any of these things could change. This moment is a miracle. Not to mention, my lovely lady is my little miracle. How about you? How are you appreciating all the moments that are miracles in your life?