Repeat after me: Some days may be horrific but there’s always something that’s terrific.
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I don’t know about you, but this year has been the definition of an emotional roller coaster for my family. We’ve had many many highs and several lows. In just the last few months we’ve experienced death, career growth, job loss, a new baby, an interesting medical diagnosis and a new home. And that only covers what’s happened in our life from July to October. Just imagine how crazy the remaining eight months of our lives have been. As soon as something great and life altering happens to us, something equally as bad was just around around the corner. It was mentally exhausting and it still is.
Yes, you can chalk it up to “that’s just life”. However, it made it difficult to appreciate the good that happened. It became scary to enjoy good things because previous experience made us believe that something bad was on its way. Throw in the lack of sleep I was getting thanks to a newborn into the mix, and our life seemed like it was something to be endured over being enjoyed.
It wasn’t until we experienced job loss that we realized we had to make a change. The job situation was so deflating and it made everyday seem like a drag until I realized all the good that came from the loss. Honestly, we stopped acknowledging anything good in general for a while. And it made life drag. Luckily, I noticed before we too far gone and realized we needed to make a change. We needed to relearn how to start enjoying life.
It’s not difficult to start enjoying life. We just make it seem that way. Like my mom always says, “Everything is simple. We make it difficult.” So how do you start enjoying life more? We follow these two simple steps.
- Start appreciating the present moment
- Never stop celebrating all the good moments
Yes, it’s way easier than it sounds but hear me out. It’s not difficult at all to start enjoying the present moment. It’s something they often tell you in meditation and yoga. We are a society obsessed with worrying about what has already happened and worrying about what will happen later. Maybe it’s stressing over an email you sent yesterday or stressing over what you will cook for dinner when the family visits next week. Whatever is weighing heavy on your mind has absolutely nothing to do with the moment you are in currently. The only way you can ruin the current moment is by worrying about things that already happened or haven’t happened yet. Whether you are sitting on your bed reading this post or walking around the mall, there is absolutely nothing wrong with the present moment. Learn to appreciate your current state and recognize that it’s perfect.
So that’s step one to start enjoying life. And I admit that it’s not always easy, but step two is definitely easier. All you have to do is recognize all those perfect or good moments you had collectively and celebrate them. Again, I know some days may be easier to do this than others, but it’s still possible.
Think about it. Even on your worst days, you’re bound to have experienced a few good things. Maybe it was something small like catching no traffic so you finally made it to work on time or finding a five dollar bill in your winter coat. Or maybe it was simply remembering to actually hit send when responding to a text message.( Trust me. It’s easy to forget to actually respond to texts instead of just responding mentally.) Whatever it was, savor it and appreciate all the good that came from it. Continuously pat yourself on the back for mastering the scrambled eggs you made for breakfast or how great your bedroom looked after you made the bed. Even on the days when you didn’t get your promised promotion or your car breaks down there were a small collection of good moments that happened that day. Trusting that even on our worst days, that something good has happened will make enjoying life in reach.
And no, it doesn’t mean you cant have bad days. It just means we need to spend less time internalizing the bad days and bad moments. Instead, we need to allow ourselves to see the good and enjoy it. It’s ok if the only good thing that happened to you that day was surviving the bad day. Surviving a bad day is worth celebrating too.
And don’t just enjoy it; savor it. It’s those good moments, big and small ones, that will make seeing your life in rose colored glasses so much easier. Once, we start savoring those good moments of all sizes, we can finally start enjoying life.
Because I feel like everyday holds something terrific I’ve chosen to toast to it daily and document it. So every week this month, I’ll be sharing with you my “One Terrific Thing: Toast to a Terrific Life in which I raise a glass to something terrific that happened that day. Please follow along weekly as I celebrate this crazy thing called life. I hope you will start enjoying life more and raising a glass to one terrific thing as well.
Do you find it difficult to enjoy life? How do you appreciate the little things?
Terrific Quip: Believe everything that happens to you is in your favor.
Doing those two things is definitely a good way to start enjoying life. It’s so true, even on your worst days something good has come out of it.
Losing a job is definitely devastating because something that was once a part of your routine, isn’t any longer. It is good you found the silver lining.
Life is all about perspective. You gotta start appreciating and life will show you the beauty!