During the summer of 2012, the world conspired against me.
I suffered from Facebook doldrums. A glance at my news feed told me everyone else was going on a great vacation. But we were staying home because a lunatic client was making our work life hellish. Stupid stinky client! Sucking all the joy out of summer like soda up a straw at the county fair.
It was the middle of summer, hot, humid, and my life was well….my life. I could see the spill in the kitchen that needed wiping up, and the floor that needed vacuuming. In comparison,
So I sat on my couch feeling sorry for myself (yes, it was pitiful), and then our cat Buttercup went tearing through the house chasing a dust mote or whatever it is that catches the eye of a six month old kitten. She failed to account for the changing terrain (area rug to hardwoods) and the sudden loss of traction was a problem. There she went! Sliding into the wall. Then she got up and looked around to see if anyone had noticed.
The whole thing made me laugh because, hey, I’m nothing if not the kind of person who likes to laugh at dogs and cats doing stupid stuff.
I looked down at the Facebook status bar and typed:
August 1: Simple Pleasure: Watching the cat run through the house and try to turn a quick corner on hardwood floors.
Such a mundane moment. The sort of thing that might happen any day of the week at our house, but suddenly this little bit of ordinary seemed anything but,… and if I’d been on vacation, I’d have missed it.
A thought occurred to me. What if I looked for something like that tomorrow, too? Another Simple Pleasure. Would there be one? What would it look like? Could there be a little moment like that every day??
The next day the Facebook vacation pictures were still there (and I was still at home) …so I looked around and noticed the flowers in the garden.
August 2: Simple Pleasure: Watching the zinnias & cosmos in the flower garden bob their heads in the breeze.
I decided I’d look for something lovely every single day for a while. Maybe a week.
August 3: Simple Pleasure: Homemade, fresh-from-the-oven baking powder biscuits – all golden brown – with homemade raspberry jam melting over the top.
August 4: Simple Pleasure: Knowing there are fresh, crisp sheets waiting for you when you slip into bed tonight.
August 5: Simple Pleasure: The sound of 8-year-old boy giggles.
August 6: Simple Pleasure: Sumatra blend coffee first thing on a Monday morning.
August 7: Simple Pleasure: Waking up in the middle of the night with “hot pillow,” then flipping it over. Aaaahhh. Cool pillow!
After a week of looking for good things, I realized I saw more good things because I made a conscious effort to seek them out.
That was 2012.
Can there be a moment like that every single day? Yes, but only if you’re looking for it.
And so I did and there’s been something every day since then.
Along the way I changed to a shorter hashtag, #SimpleJoy, but the message is the same. If you’d like one #SimpleJoy every day…stop by Facebook and give it a like and a follow.