Plants gone potty!: Now that I think about it...

Image credit: Pierre-Narcisse Guérin - The Return of Marcus Sextus (Wikimedia Commons)

Hey there Potty —

When you stop to think about it, life consists of big moments and small.

But we don't, do we? That is, we don't stop to think about it all that often.

It's awfully easy to get caught in the struggles we have each day. Rushing to get out the door, kids to get dressed and fed, a commute from hell, back-to-back meetings, deadlines, errands, elderly parents who need checking on, a neighbor who's angry with your landscaping choice… Calgon, take me away!

But what about the things that happened throughout the morning? Or over the weekend? Or while you were taking a walk? Or talking with a loved one?

"To a great mind, nothing is little." - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

If you're reading this, it's likely that you've been bestowed with a number of micro-blessings in your life. How often do you reflect on that? How frequently do you consider the minutiae that make life so enriching?

In his Meditations, Marcus Aurelius opens Book 1 with a list of people in his life and the things they've taught him, such as:

"My grandfather Verus: Character and self-control.
My father (from my own memories and his reputation): Integrity and maniless…
Sextus: Kindness…
Maximus: Self-control and resistance to distractions. Optimism in adversity - especially illness. A personality in balance: dignity and grace."

Even Sherlock Holmes, that thinking machine who seemed to be all brain and no heart, understood that from time to time, it was important to the mind and soul to appreciate one's surroundings. In "The Naval Treaty," amid trying to locate the whereabouts of a missing government document, he suddenly fell into a reverie:

"Our highest assurance of the goodness of Providence seems to me to rest in the flowers. All other things, our powers our desires, our food, are all really necessary for our existence in the first instance. But this rose is an extra. Its smell and its color are an embellishment of life, not a condition of it. It is only goodness which gives extras, and so I say again that we have much to hope from the flowers."

Simple Gifts
It seems to me that we have plenty to be thankful for, if we pause for a moment and take stock in our lives. Here are a few simple pleasure in life:

Falling in love
Laughing so hard your face hurts
A hot shower
No lines at the supermarket
A special glance
Getting mail
Taking a drive on a pretty road
Hearing your favorite song
Lying in bed listening to the rain outside
Hot towels fresh out of the dryer
A milkshake
A bubble bath
Giggling
A good conversation
The beach
Finding a $20 bill in your coat from last winter
Laughing at yourself
Midnight phone calls that last for hours
Running through sprinklers
Laughing for no reason at all
Having someone tell you that you're beautiful
Laughing at an inside joke
Friends
Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you
Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours to sleep
Your first kiss (either the very first or with a new partner)
Making new friends or spending time with old ones
Playing with a new puppy
Having someone play with your hair
Sweet dreams
Hot chocolate
Road trips with friends
Swinging on swings
Making eye contact with a cute stranger
Making chocolate chip cookies
Having your friends send you home-made cookies
Holding hands with someone you care about
Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change
Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much-desired present from you
Watching the sun rise (or set)
Getting out of bed every morning being grateful for another beautiful day
Knowing that someone misses you
Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply
Knowing you've done the right thing, no matter what other people think
Watching your child play and hearing them laugh
Looking up at the stars on a clear night
Making a snowman
Making a sand castle
Summer thundershowers
Attending a little league game, either as a player or as a parent
Sleeping withe the windows open and waking up to the perfectly cool morning air
The smell of: freshly-cut grass, cookies in the oven, hot pavement after it rains, a used bookstore, and the ocean
The sound of birds chirping in the pre-dawn hours

These are just a few I can put my finger on; I'm sure you can come up with many more of your own.

Every day is an opportunity to be thankful for what you're blessed with in life. While doing so, consider that not everyone has access to such simple pleasures.

Please share this, and try to create joy for people who need it in their lives.

Thanks, and I'll see you on the Internet.

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