Mining for Joy

 I have struggled with SAD (seasonal affective disorder) for a few years now, so when I saw an article  about some happiness hacks at the eye doctor's office while I was there with Joel today it caught my eye (see what I did there?).

One of the methods the article (that I wish I had written down the name of) suggested was "mining pleasant moments for their joy" or in other words, the art of savoring (Health Magazine, October 2014)--you know, burning some nice smelling candles, making yourself a cup of your favorite tea (chamomile, Sweet and Spicy herbal, and mint are a few of my favorites), really tasting that steak, listening to some good music--that sort of thing. This is an idea I can get behind. The article also said that people who saw the good in small things and shared their "delight" with others were more consistently happy than people who didn't appreciate the little things. Being grateful for little things begets happiness and I think sharing that gratitude reinforces the good feelings. Makes perfect sense, right?

This evening I was feeling kind of frazzled. After the eye appointment I didn't have time to make dinner since I hadn't planned well. I got home from the appointment with Joel and none of the other boys were ready to go. We needed to pick Dave up from work for a Boy Scout Court of Honor that we were attending tonight. Driving was stressing me out because I really dislike driving at night, especially in the rain, but we managed to make it to the church for the Court of Honor a few minutes early despite everything.

Looking at these handsome faces every day makes me very happy.

We had been listening to CDs in the car and Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven" came on just as we were pulling into the parking lot, so Dave said, "Let's just sit here and listen to this for a few minutes." We turned off the car and for eight minutes we sat in the warm car and just listened to Zeppelin. It was fantastic. I felt much more mellow after that and we went in and enjoyed the evening. Afterwards I had fun playing a little basketball with my older boys--that is something I don't think I've done in years, but I can still dribble a ball between my legs. Kind of.

Small moments I am grateful for today:
--Finding a full-sized Snickers Almond bar (my favorite) when I was cleaning the attic. It was in a tote bag and little smooshed but it still tasted delicious.
--Seeing all the pictures of veterans on Facebook today. I'm so grateful for all the men and women who have sacrificed so much for our freedoms.
--Laughing during Gilmore Girls (watched while I was cleaning the attic). I love to laugh.
--Seeing all four of my boys in their scout uniforms. We have had our challenges with scouting, but I'm so proud of my boys for working hard and living those values espoused by the Scout Law ("A scout is trustworthy, loyal, helpful, friendly, courteous, kind, obedient, cheerful, thrifty, brave, clean and reverent").