Little Things

Written by Crista Leonard

I think we have it all wrong (the vast majority of us anyway). Life. What is life about? What’s really important? What makes life worth living? These are questions that some people may spend much of their lives trying to answer. I can sum it all up in one word: beauty. Life is about beauty. And no, I’m not talking about looking like Gisele or Brad Pitt. All the plastic surgery and hair dye in the world wouldn’t help most of us out in that department. I mean finding beauty in the little things. So much of our time and effort is spent on trying to be (or appear) happy. The things that we are taught that will make us happy are, for the most part, materialistic. In my opinion, this is a crying shame. Maybe, just maybe if we would all learn to appreciate the little things, we would be a much happier society. There would be less pressure to “keep up with the Jones’s.” Everyone would work less and be more relaxed. Instead we are all consumed with trying to buy a bigger house, have a nicer car, and go on a fancier vacation. I say forget all that. None of it matters. None of it will last. None of it will go to the grave with us. The things we will take with us are the memories and experiences we have had. The moments that I most cherish in my life are not when I got a brand new Mustang at sixteen, or when I bought my first designer handbag. They are moments that can’t be bought. Moments that make me truly grateful to be alive and a part of the journey. It’s the little things.

So what are “the little things” you ask? I have a list a mile long, but I’ll spare you and only include some of the highlights... It’s the look of sheer joy on your kid’s face after getting off the school bus for the first time. It’s the smell of clean laundry. It’s walking barefoot through the grass on the first warm summer day. It’s the way the sun glistens off of freshly fallen snowflakes. It’s the way your daughters pick flowers and sneak them into your car, filling your cup holder and door handles so that when you find them, they have dried into a delicate potpourri. It’s the sound of music. It’s seeing a rainbow. It’s the way someone looks at you, a look that would take a thousand words to describe. It’s the way the colors dance with the clouds at sunset. It’s the way the stars shine extra bright on a cold clear night, making you marvel at just how big the universe really is and wonder who is up there watching. All of these things are free, yet priceless.

These things may sound a bit dreamer-ish to some of you, like I’m one of those crazy idealists who smile all day and see everything through rose colored glasses, but I can assure you that I am no dreamer. I am quite the opposite actually. So my fellow realists, listen up! You too can learn to appreciate the little things, for after all, they ARE real. At times it’s really hard to be positive and I understand that better than most people (To my astrology lovers- I’m a Capricorn, we are known for being pessimistic...I’ll blame it on the stars). But it’s during these times that I try to think about what I am grateful for and I think about the beauty in life - the little things - and it brings me peace.