Today, I was given a chance to fix a “Giveaway miss.” A couple of days ago, I had been disappointed to find in the mail a package that I had sent to my friend Dawn on June 11. I had made a mistake with her address, so she hadn’t received the book on Japanese food that I had sent her. I felt awful standing there at our front door holding the package meant for Dawn. I felt especially bad because she had been worrying that something had happened to it, and I certainly don’t want my Giveaway to become a cause for worry for my friends.

Today, I had to take Theo and two friends to an art class at the Armory Center for the Arts (see April 8), which is on the same block as Dawn’s home in Pasadena. So, I asked Dawn if she could meet me outside when I dropped them off. Luckily, she was free at that time. So, I headed over with the kids and the package, parked the car in the loading zone in front of the Armory, ran in to sign in the kids, and rushed out back out to meet Dawn, who was leaning against a lamppost reading her newspaper. After we’d said hello, I sheepishly handed her the misaddressed package and apologized for my mistake. Then I pulled another little package out of my handbag. During that lunch on June 11, Dawn mentioned buying matcha tea powder and asked our group of friends for recommendations about how best to drink it. That evening, after I had mailed her the book, I realized that I had a bamboo tea whisk that I could have sent her so that she could use it to whip up her powdered tea. I regretted slightly not giving her that instead of the book. This morning, I remembered the tea whisk and realized I was being given the chance to give her the whisk too. Suddenly the silly mistake I’d made seemed like a blessing, an opportunity to improve upon an earlier action. So, rather than feel crummy about messing up my Giveaway by writing a 4 instead of a 1 on the address label, and beating myself up about being careless (as I often do), I am feeling thankful that the universe gave me one of those rare second chances to fix a mistake.