“It isn’t easy in our complicated world to enjoy the pleasures of ordinary living – children, family, neighborhood, nature, walking, gathering, eating together. I imagine life not as an ambitious quest, but as an anti-quest, a search for the ordinary and a cultivation of the unexceptional.” ~ Thomas Moore
The happiest people often lead the simplest lives, and such a state is what I strive to achieve. One of the common components in the many studies of how to find happiness is the thread of meditation and mindfulness that runs through the practices of so many who seem to have found a sense of peace and calm in their lives. Part of that is in finding the enjoyment in the misunderstood-as-mundane moments of life.
Take, for instance, the reading glasses pictured here. A whimsical lark of a purchase – is there anything more dreadfully dull as having to buy and wear reading glasses? – I made the most of it and found something in a fun color and pattern. More than that, however, is the appreciation for what they do for me. When I slip them on, the words on the page are suddenly easy to see again, and reading becomes the joy that was slipping away from me in my stubbornness not to be bothered with glasses anymore. There, in that one simple and mundane act of putting on reading glasses, I cherished and gave gratitude for the sight and pleasure it gave me. It’s a small ritual that will now trigger a frisson of joy every time it happens.
“The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in all the details of daily life.” ~ William Morris
Take also this book I just finished, ‘The Book of Hygge’ by Louisa Thomsen Brits. A couple of years ago I’d never even heard of hygge. Suzie kept its charms to herself without sharing such a wonderful concept with the rest of us, but like the ideas of the floating world, it called to me from a deeper level, and I began my investigative journey. That’s led me to all sorts of literature and writing on the subject of hygge, and it turns out much of it aligns with the principles of meditation and mindfulness – an embracing of the present moment, a savoring of the hour and pleasures at hand, and a way of pushing distractions out of the forefront of the mind in service of clarity and calm.
“Every repast can have soul and can be enchanting; it only asks for a small degree of mindfulness and a habit of doing things with care and imagination.” ~ Thomas Moore
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