Lunch at a restaurant with a friend, live and in person. A restaurant with indoor seating, masks are not required for those vaccinated. OMG, after the long year of home cooking (not much variety there), takeout (fun once in a while, not all the time), and lust in front of Food Network reruns, the trip to the restaurant was more than a welcome event. It was Nirvana.

I couldn’t help but overhear the conversation of the couple behind us. “They don’t have anything I want,” the woman wailed. “I thought you liked salmon,” her friend replied. “Not grilled like this, it’ll be all dry,” the woman said. “Maybe you can ask them to scalp it,” her friend suggested. “Too bad,” the woman said. “And what about the waiter?” she continued, “we’ve been here at least 15 minutes, and we haven’t seen any skin or hair from him since he dumped the water. Which he spilled on the table, by the way, look at that!”

Surely the woman was right, especially anyway. But what a way to bombard a perfectly good experience! Instead, she could have just focused on “What’s so good about this picture?” It may not have changed the facts: perhaps the restaurant would not have prepared her salmon any differently, and the server had not been at her table in 15 minutes, but it certainly would have changed the woman’s experience of the facts.

We’ll see. It was a restaurant, so there was no food to prepare or dishes to wash. There was an extensive menu, so many options beyond just salmon. There was a person willing to serve them. The couple were sitting, together, indoors, without masks, which means they could have enjoyed chatting with each other. They might have appreciated just being back in the world, considering our last year of pandemic. So much was “correct” with his image.

No matter where you are, no matter how you’re coming out of your COVID-restricted shell, do your best to see “What’s Right With This Picture.” Your job may have suffered, you may have to adjust to new work circumstances. Your children may be driving you crazy with their disputes over changing school arrangements. You may be worried about what his friends will think of all this pandemic-induced weight you’ve gained or lost. You may be confused about how to resume normal family or dating or dating life, and what is normal now anyway?

We are all in this together, more than ever. One thing I know for sure is that we can all benefit from a healthy dose of “What’s right with this picture?” when we look at our changed world, our friends and co-workers, and yes, especially and even ourselves.