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:
- My dog’s ears, nose and paws
- Second Hand Bookstores
- Being on the deck of a ship
- Wild swimming
- Lentil dahl
- Espresso
- The dog greeting me on my return home
- Clear frosty mornings
- Getting “retweeted”
- Discovering a new favourite author
- Looking at Rembrandt’s paintings in situ
- Baking bread
- Mown grass
- Corduroy
- Laughing hard
- Baths with bubbles
- My spouse sleeping peacefully
- Loading a fresh roll of film
- Forgotten items in jacket pockets
- A cup of coffee that someone else has made for me
- Autumn
- Ragtime
- Familiar Hymns
- The smell of wood-smoke
- Bach
- Rainbows
- A pint of Guinness
- The static at the beginning of a record
- Receiving an handwritten letter
- Small medieval churches
- Bumblebees
- Writing in the dead of night
- Walled gardens
- Lombardy poplars
- When underdogs win
- Backgammon and wine
- Finishing something
- Treehouses
- Taking off and landing in a plane
- Aftrnoon naps
- Flat on back, lights out, head between the speakers
- A sauna and cold plunge
- Live music
- Soap
- Aubergines
- Pillow talk
- Sandalwood
- Art Deco buildings and objects
- New notebooks
- Crabs and lobsters (not on my plate, though)
Sweet!Makes me happy just to think on them.
What would be your 50 happinesses?
Wow, these are great! “Amen” to…well, too many to list. Let’s see…2, 6, 10, 12, 24, 29, 32, 40, 49, and others in between.
I love this list Seymour, it makes me feel all fuzzy and warm! I’ll retweet it… 😉
Thanks for retweeting, Robyn! Glad you liked it. It’s a great exercise, you should give it a go.
These are my favourites:
Being on the deck of a ship
The smell of wood-smoke
Walled gardens
Treehouses
Which would lead me to… a treehouse designed like a ship… in a walled garden with a small fire?
… Listening to Bach and eating Lentil Dahl while my wife sleeps peacefully next to me – paradise!
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