Awesome things

I have just discovered a life-enhancing website to brighten the occasional grey days that we all suffer from time to time. The author of 1000 Awesome Things at www.1000awesomethings.com set himself the task of describing one of those small facets of life every day for a thousand days – starting at 1000 he is now down to number 464 – in the form of a rolling blog. Recent posts have described the joy of using milk instead of water in pancakes, hot chocolate and mushroom soup; the moment of anticipation just before the first kiss; capturing a perfect picture and finishing your last exam.

The website has been so successful that it won a Webby award and has now metamorphosed into a best-selling book. It has stimulated me into creating a few blogs on the same subject which will appear over the next few weeks. I have already started a list – gooked eggs (my favourite comfort food), the kindness of strangers, things that work when they shouldn’t and surprising successes of one’s children. Western mankind has become a complaining species only happy when members can leap into litigation quoting human rights, health and safety other people’s responsibility when we could be enjoying life so much more if we forgave a little more often and looked for silver linings. We ought to celebrate the glimpses of sunlight on the mountain tops instead of wallowing in the swamps of self pity.

We would all be a lot contented if we took time out at the end of each day to remember one fleeting moment of unexpected happiness. They often happen in the blink of an eye so keep them open to the possibility. As Nathaniel Hawthorne said “Happiness is a butterfly which, when pursued, is always beyond our grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight on you.”

Be happy.