Tag: quotes

friday’s “secret” – “taking a genuine interest”

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“The true secret of happiness lies in taking a genuine interest in the details of daily live.” -William Morris

As I was perusing the book Happier at Home by Gretchen Rubin (check the out the book here and where I talked about perusing the book here), I came across the above quote.

I am in total agreement with this statement.  I find that when I am particular, detailed, deliberate, and intentional, in almost all of the details of life, I enjoy life more.  When I know what I plan to accomplish that day and when I am methodical about making sure that I do it, there is a peace and satisfaction at the end of the day that leads to a feeling of contentment: a necessary element of my personal definition of happiness.

My personality lends itself to this type of “obsessive” behavior, however.  I love details, logistics, and planning.  But for others, I think, taking an interest in the minutia could  become tedious.  Thus, the quote could inspire them to take a genuine interest in those activities that they enjoy and not feel guilty about it.

What do you think? Leave your comments below.

“don’t waste your days…”

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So, one thing that makes me happy is Pinterest! I LOVE Pinterest!!!! For those who don’t know, Pinterest is like a digital corkboard, where you can “pin” photos, quotes, cartoons, almost anything. I “pin” a lot. A LOT! Sometimes, I forget what I have pinned and when I see it again, I will repin it. I did that with the quote above.

I pinned it twice, on the same board, and two different days. Why? Because it is something that I have done for years! When I was a kid, I wanted to be a teenager. When I was thirteen, I wanted to be sixteen! When I was single, I couldn’t wait to be married! And I have now realized that I have wasted a lot of my life, wishing, hoping, praying for the next thing, thinking that that will be better than what I am experiencing at that time.

And it is just not true. It is true that every experience has brought a new joy, however, for me, this is a chronic problem that has robbed me of so many joys and experiences. And it is very sad when I think of all the things that I have missed experiencing to the fullest measure.

So, I am trying not to do that anymore (as much). And it might be something that I will always struggle with, but I am going to make a conscience decision each day (that I can remember) to “enjoy the now.” How are you going to “enjoy the now”?  Leave a comment below. After all, it is the only time that any of us are guaranteed.

enjoy life…

Oh! You can check out my Pinterest boards (I have several different “boards” on a variety of subjects) by clicking here.

a life “brimming with” books

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On Friday, I talked about how pathetic it was to wish for things that I could have and I asked  what you were going to be intentional about doing.

First, I was so overwhelmed and humbled by the response that I received. Thank you so much for reading. And another thank-you to all those who took the time to post replies/comments in the comment section. I get a special thrill of happiness when I see those so keep them coming.

Well, on to the rest of the post…Allow me to share what I did this weekend.

One of the things that I have wished that I could do was spend more time in one of my favorite places, Barnes & Noble, sipping a hot beverage on a cool (or coolish), fall day. That’s what I did. I skimmed the new book, Happier at Home, by Gretchen Rubin. The first book that I read by her, The Happiness Project, is in large part responsible for this blog and quickly became one of my favorite books. Check it out here.

While there I asked whether the Starbucks had apple cider. It is a seasonal thing, usually reserved for the fall and I didn’t know if it was too early. It wasn’t! The barista recommended spiced caramel apple cider. It was sooooooo good. And such a simple pleasure that I WILL be including in my life more often.

I loved my weekend and realized even more the need to add simple pleasures, intentionally, into my life on a regular basis.

“Enjoy the little things, for one day, you may look back and realize they were the big things.” -Robert Brault

enjoy life…