Inspired by Barb Lane at THIS | LIMINALITY who in turn was provoked by Julia Cameron‘s Daily Pages in “The Right to Write” I have tried this little exercise to think of 50 things that make me happy. It shouldn’t be a surprise that they are all very simple things that generally cost nothing, and this itself is food for thought. I found the exercise got harder after about 20 items. Doing 50 means you really have to dig a bit deeper – but I recommend it as an excellent way of cultivating an awareness of the simple pleasures. I think it would be quite easy now to do another 50 as I am more aware. Give it a go.

Here are mine:

1. My dog’s ears, nose and paws
2. Second Hand Bookstores
3. Being on the deck of a ship
4. Wild swimming
5. Lentil dahl
6. Espresso
7. The dog greeting me on my return home
8. Clear frosty mornings
9. Getting “retweeted”
10. Discovering a new favourite author
11. Looking at Rembrandt’s paintings in situ
12. Baking bread
13. Mown grass
14. Corduroy
15. Laughing hard
16. Baths with bubbles
17. My spouse sleeping peacefully
18. Loading a fresh roll of film
19. Forgotten items in jacket pockets
20. A cup of coffee that someone else has made for me
21. Autumn
22. Ragtime
23. Familiar Hymns
24. The smell of wood-smoke
25. Bach
26. Rainbows
27. A pint of Guinness
28. The static at the beginning of a record
29. Receiving an handwritten letter
30. Small medieval churches
31. Bumblebees
32. Writing in the dead of night
33. Walled gardens
34. Lombardy poplars
35. When underdogs win
36. Backgammon and wine
37. Finishing something
38. Treehouses
39. Taking off and landing in a plane
40. Aftrnoon naps
41. Flat on back, lights out, head between the speakers
42. A sauna and cold plunge
43. Live music
44. Soap
45. Aubergines
46. Pillow talk
47. Sandalwood
48. Art Deco buildings and objects
49. New notebooks
50. Crabs and lobsters (not on my plate, though)

Sweet!Makes me happy just to think on them.

What would be your 50 happinesses?