Today is the one-year anniversary of my first blog post, wherein I explained my realization that it’s apparently unique to create happiness for yourself and for others. At that time, I knew the coming year would be a hard one, but I hoped to get through it with a smile. Well, turns out it was the most heartrending year of my life. And there were more tears than there were smiles.
That said, I’m determined to cram as much happiness as I can into the coming year and each one thereafter because, well, life is short and the only way to live it properly is to spend each day doing things that make you happy.
So, what makes me happy?
Good people. Don’t be fooled. These are rare. When I say “good,” I mean… always have a smile on their face, give the best hugs, offer advice that shows they really know you, laugh at the same things you do, make you feel better about life… kind of people. Make time for them – they’re the only ones really worth your time.
Ice cream. As a kid, my dad and I would always end the weekend nights with ice cream. Since I’m a big girl now, I’ve been ending every night with ice cream and, damn, is it delicious. Indulge as needed.
Sunshine. Sunny days have a way of washing cares away and I’m pretty sure I’m due for a dousing. Along with warm weather comes warm weather activities like walking, hiking, sunning and biking. All of which I wish I could do year-round. Perhaps a move westward is in order.
Writing. If I could do anything in the world, I would spend each day writing my little heart out. The only way to become a better writer is to…
- Write.
- Write more.
- Write even more.
- Write even more than that.
- Write when you don’t want to.
- Write when you do.
- Write when you have something to say.
- Write when you don’t.
- Write every day.
- Keep writing.
(I love this. But I did not come up with it. Read the original post from @copyblogger)
Traveling. This is something I’ve done very little of in life and I plan to change that. As a bit of an edit to my prior statement, if I could do anything in the world, I would travel the world and write about it. And I think I will, thank you very much.
I believe I just made an unintentional to-do list. Looks more inviting than any of the other to-do lists I’ve tackled lately. Guess I’ll spend time doing these things. How about you? What makes you happy?
Happy Anniversary, Me.
Thanks for this post. I’m going through some tough stuff right now in life too and keep telling myself that this is the year for me. This is the year that I reinvent myself, do things I’ve always wanted to do, develop some new hobbies, spend time with good people, focus on myself, smile more, etc. I hope that I’m able to do it. I look back on the past year and it makes me sad all that I have endured. I have a tough journey ahead of me that I’ve only recently begun, but I hope a year from now I can look back and smile about something.
I know what you mean about traveling too. To cheer me up a friend took me an art museum in a town I was getting ready to move out of. She wanted me to have some “positive memories” of the city I spent 11 terrible months in. As we walked from room to room and I admired the magnificent works of art, all I could think about was the places I still wanted to go to and how even though some of my dreams and goals in life have come to a halt, traveling doesn’t have to be one of them. So I vowed to take my dream vacation in just over a year from now. I’m already saving. It’s the one thing that keeps me going on the days that feel dark.
Anyway, thanks for your post and happy belated anniversary.
Thanks so much for sharing your thoughts! Most of the time, if you put your mind to something, you can see it through. Life can slap you in the face, so it’s important to do little things for yourself and for the people you care about every day in order to maintain some level of happiness even through the worst of times.
Take care :)