“It is in the smallest boxes we find the most precious things,” Atouche…  I liked this little reminder that it isn’t always the big things in life that bring us the most joy.  It isn’t even the big things that make us who we are at times.  It’s the culmination, the combination of all the little pieces that make us who we are and make our lives so special.  The way we smile, the way someone smiles at us, the sound of a loved one’s voice at the end of a rough day, saying hello my beautiful wife.  The appreciation of a good meal—whether we make it or have it prepared for us.  The thrill of finding that perfect book, shirt, piece of art, a vision coming together.  The unrelenting joy of being together with someone you hadn’t seen for a really long time.  Celebrating anything because the more joy we have in our lives the more joy we bring.  Seeing a sign from source that we are on the right track.  When we finally accomplish a goal and get that win or we are just able to take time to play the game.  When we are able to slow down and take a walk in nature—or just get out a bit.  A vacation, even if it’s just time away from work where we can come back to ourselves for a little bit.        

For me, it’s the way the cats follow me all day when I’m home or when I get home from work they find me, they curl up with me while I work and they sleep with me at night.  The way my son asks me to cover him up at night because he likes the way I do it—and then how he asks me if we can stay home and cuddle rather than go to school and work in the morning.  The way I understand that those little moments create the magic I felt as a kid, the moments I thought were so special and took so much time, I see are mere seconds and in the simplest of actions like tucking him in at night or reading with him or listening to him talk about the things he loves.  The presence, the ministry of presence that demonstrates and solidifies love in our minds like when my husband puts his hand on my back at night.  Sitting in my special chair or in my bed or on my side of the couch and reading a book.  Watching a movie cuddled up under the giant 10×10 blanket with the whole family.  Slow weekend mornings that feel perfectly timed.  Slowing down in general.  Finding the right pace in my writing.  Getting in the groove with a creative project.  Spending holidays with the family—and it’s about time, not anything else.  Moving my body—and a massage!! Seeing the snow start to fall or seeing the first signs of spring, or the heat of summer, and the calming of fall.  The ability to simply be and let things be is the greatest thing—to be alive. 

None of these are particularly big things but they are monumental in forming the core of life. I know so many times we feel the day to day is boring or that we are somehow missing out on something.  There are so many options in this life it can be overwhelming and we tend to live in a go big or go home, do-it-all-yourself, never-stop-moving society.  And the truth is there are endless possibilities in this world and it is so freaking cool that we get to decide what to do with our lives.  We can’t get overwhelmed in the thrill of it that we paralyze ourselves with indecision just as much as we can’t be so driven that we miss out on the present moment.  We can’t miss the point—that while we are creating something we love, we are also living with those we love.  This is the only time we have and at the end of the day we will likely regret more of what we didn’t do than what we did do with the exception of overdoing.  It really is the little things that matter and add up to the big things, the joy of life.