International Day of Happiness 2020
Happy Friday!
I hope you are having a great week so far.
What has happened in the last week? Everything feels so different now. Coronavirus is taking over the world, and definitely dominating all the news. Last weekend was really quiet and I expect this one will be too. Other than the grocery stores being sold out of everything, my day to day life here is still pretty normal. We are still going to the office and taking public transportation, although I expect that will change soon.
March 20th is International Day of Happiness, and I think with all this coronavirus craziness, it’s the perfect time to reflect on what makes us happy. There are the big things that make me happy, like my recent holiday to one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. And the small day to day things that put a smile on my face.
In no particular order, here are 20 things that have made me happy lately:
Photos and videos of Tj’s nephew (our godson!)
The good chai tea from T2.
Getting a seat on my morning commute for the first time ever.
My mom “cancelled” Lent because of everything shutting down for coronavirus, so I didn’t have to wait until Easter for chocolate.
My aunt’s instructional sangria video.
FaceTiming and chatting with my friends and family.
That Jacob got out of Spain and I don’t have to worry about him being all alone there.
That Jacob is home now and can send me lots of videos of the dog.
Epic blindsides on Australian Survivor.
The new Harlan Coben book.
That most of my plants aren’t dying (hang in there tomato plant!)
Entertaining group chats.
Getting a 100 day snapchat streak with my friend Anna.
Having toilet paper thanks to the kindness of my coworkers.
This show I taped about a dog named Bear that rescued koalas during the bush fires (I can’t handle the cuteness!).
A new puzzle I bought.
The hope I get from the lottery ticked I bought. I don’t need to win (although that’d be nice), but it’s fun to think about what I would do if I ever did win.
Baking a new recipe (ginger pear pistachio blondies).
Eating my ginger pear pistachio blondies.
This quokka selfie :)
I’ve already started making a list of things I want to do during this period of self-isolation. At this early stage, I’m approaching it almost like a break from real life. Suddenly I have a lot more downtime than I am used to. And I don’t need to feel guilty that there are other things I should be out doing, because everyone is in the same boat.
I have two ideas - I will either use this extra time to work on some projects I have on the go. Or I will use this time to get everything else done (the cleaning and the organising, and the life admin) that get in the way of the other stuff I’d rather be doing. I don’t think it will take long to cut out things that don’t actually make me happy. I imagine I will get sick of scrolling on my phone pretty quickly, and there are limits to how many tv shows I can watch. And when I’m caught up on everything, I think there will be no excuses for not pursuing things that make me genuinely happy, like keeping in touch with friends and family, and reading about things that interest me.
I am happiest when the people I love are happy too, so hopefully today I can spread some cheer and kindness and maybe put a smile on someones’s face.
Have a happy happiness day!
