Scents, Food & Thoughts...

It’s the simplest of things that make me the happiest.

The smell of clean clothes, a really good vanilla candle, a burning campfire, mist off the ocean, freshly cut grass, the hint of a future snowfall, freshly cut cucumbers to go into a salad, cedar and pine, my kids after a bath, bubbles in my own bath, food cooking in the oven.

Food shopping makes me feel whole. There’s something about coming home and looking at a fully stocked refrigerator and cabinets that just makes me say “aahhh.”. When I first moved out of my parents house and into my own apartment, I could not wait to go food shopping. It was one of the very first things I did once I was settled in. I could not wait to cook – I wasn’t allowed to cook at home as a kid. Which is okay – it just made my being able to when I was on my own that much more enjoyable. I love to cook – for me, eating is purely social. If I lived alone, I’d either have to have company every night – or I probably wouldn’t eat. Sort of like watching television – eating is something that is just that much more fun when you’re with someone else.

Being shown that you matter to someone – especially someone that you wouldn’t normally expect it from – is always a great “pick me up”. I love when I come into work and one of my friends thought to put something as small as a sticky note on my monitor that says “Good Morning!” or “Have a good day today!”. To have someone remember something I mentioned casually in a conversation, and then think to follow up on is always a good thing. Receiving a card just to say “I’m thinking of you” can make even the dullest of days seem better.

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the number of moments that take our breath away."
I don’t think I’ve ever heard a truer statement.