A Few Of My Favorite Things
After three extremely busy days at work, my mind began to wander as I was driving home tonight. What I started thinking about was some of the smaller things that makes life worth living; nothing earth-shattering, merely sprinkles on the ice cream. Without getting too Zen, here are just a few of the things that sprang to mind as I drove home on automatic, absentmindedly following the well worn path home like a homing pigeon, lost in thought, barely aware of the traffic around me:
Finding money in the dryer
The smell of hot asphalt after a quick rain
Cracking open the spine of a new book
When a cashier opens a new register for you at a crowded supermarket
The goosebumps that run up your arms when you hear that certain song
The distant sound of a train’s air horn as you’re drifting off to sleep
Being the tenth caller
That “A-Ha!” moment when your subconscious solves a difficult problem
The Nails Dangerous Dreams album on vinyl
Digging into a cereal box for the prize
When the artist on stage looks directly at you
The childhood memory of the smell of coffee and cigarettes
Lacing up new running shoes for the first time
Catching all of the green lights
The soft purring rumble of my cat as she sleeps curled up against me
When the movie theater is empty except for you
Dusk at the ocean and dawn in the desert
Holding hands with the wife
The feeling of the moment right before you fall asleep
The squealing sound ice makes as you slowly grind it between your teeth
That new carpet smell
We all have tiny pleasures that act as counterbalances to the daily demands of life. They pop up when you least expect them, acting as a sort of pressure valve slowly bleeding away stress before it all becomes just a bit too much to handle. As a bonus, you never know when one of these moments will occur, making each appearance an unexpected gift. And it’s these small things that we tend to often overlook until you realize how much you miss them, and how much their modest contributions help give life meaning.
A lot of these things are not necessarily unexpected gifts, but can be arranged deliberately. If you like being alone in the theater, go to unpopular movies on Monday afternoon. If you like lacing up new running shoes, buy new running shoes more often.
Tell me, would you enjoy these things less if you did them on purpose?
The point I was trying to make is that one does not have to schedule these stress relievers. They happen when you’re not even trying. There’s no way you could schedule when your pet wants a belly rub, happening upon a old friend on the street, or getting caught in an afternoon rain shower while the sun in still shining. Taking things as they happen and enjoying them for what they are is not only good for your stress level, but for the soul as well. I’m just glad things happen as they do. Sure, I could go out of my way to schedule these many of these things, but then they’d cease being joys/gifts and turn into goals and expectations. What’s the fun in that?
On a completely unrelated note, I read Survivor on the plane to Oakland and became absolutely glued to it. I was almost disappointed that my flight landed as I hadn’t finished it. I doubt anyone at TSA would be well read enough to recognize a Chuck Palahniuk book, but I was trying my best to conceal it just in case given the content. It left me with some questions but I though it was mesmerizing. Finishing a good book might be something to add to that list as well.