Since the beginning of time, people have prophesized about the meaning of life. What is the point of our existence? How does one find purpose? Is inner peace obtainable? Why didn’t I invent Facebook? The question is as simple as it is complex. Ultimately, it would seem logical that we all desire a certain amount of joy and happiness in our lives. Whether your spiritual inspiration is Freud, Nietzsche, Mandino, Budda, Yoda or Zuckerberg, our search can be a lifelong journey or enlightenment can be just a paragraph away. Who knew I was so deep, right?
During my pursuit of enlightenment, both spiritual and intellectual, I have recently unlocked the meaning of life. How? Where? When, you might ask? Let’s just say I attend the church of common sense on a regular basis and this epiphany came to me several weeks ago. Not being one to selfishly hoard a hidden treasure such as this, my New Year’s gift to all of my readers (both of you) is sharing this profound, yet oddly uncomplicated, secret. Ready? Are you sitting down? Life is about the pursuit of happiness and happiness can be found by appreciating simple pleasures. Simple pleasures can be found each and every day in every aspect of our lives if we just take the time to acknowledge them when they occur.
No one person lives life attending a non stop party filled with attention, adulation and admiration, but we all have simple pleasures that fill our heart and recharge our emotional battery. No amount of money, fame, career success, recognition, good health, sports accomplishments, religious purity or sexual conquests can sustain a person for a prolonged period of time. However, if one embraces the simple pleasures in their day to day routines, these flashes of joy and contentment add up to a lifetime of happiness.
Relationships: No relationship is perfect and every relationship has its challenges. Regardless how your relationship is defined; friendship, dating, betrothed, civil union, partners, a married couple, roommates, co-parents or estranged exes, the key is to appreciate the simple pleasures. Too often, young couples expect the honeymoon to never end and are disappointed or disillusions if there are days, weeks or months of strife. A more rewarding approach may be to focus on the simple pleasures that bring you moments of joy. My wife appreciates when I unload the dishwasher or do the grocery shopping. I, on the other hand, enjoy when we read the Sunday paper on the back patio or when I find my favorite new songs uploaded on my ipod. My worst day at the office can be erased if she greets me with a supportive hug when I arrive home. Our simple pleasures include walking the dogs, going to the movies or enjoying a nice bottle of wine. Neither of us it perfect and at times we seem disconnected, but we do our best not to take each other for granted as that’s a simple pleasure in and of its own.
Parenting: Being a parent is hard and I don’t recall getting an instruction manual when we left the hospital’s maternity ward. Babies cry too much, toddlers toddle too busy, tweens whine too much and teenagers are too moody, rebellious and prone to making bad decisions. However, parenting can also be the greatest job in the world if you take time to appreciate the simple pleasures. Contrary to popular belief, in affluent communities the latest, greatest or most expensive next big thing isn’t what makes a child happiest. A child will likely respond most favorable when a parent is involved, engaged and invested. Holding hands with my daughters is still precious. Hearing usually combative sisters laugh and giggle warms my heart. I love when they’re beaming with pride as the result of bringing home a good grade or accomplishing some athletic feat. I especially like our conversations right before bed time. If I died tomorrow, my heart would be filled with the memories of the simple pleasures we’ve shared together.
Some of my fondest memories I have as a child are of simple pleasures spent with my parents. I remember wrestling with my father in our back yard; seeing my mom’s smile whenever I donned my Cub Scout uniform and the comforting reassuring hugs they both dolled out whenever I was sad or down.
Career: In a perfect world, we would all win the lottery and either not have to work or be allowed the privilege of pursuing the career we choose, not the one we’ve fallen into. What’s the old saying? Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life. Sadly, most of us do what we do because it’s either too late to change careers or the career we want wouldn’t pay the bills. So what choice do we have except to find that simple pleasure in our Monday through Friday, nine to five routine? If you’re the boss (owner, manager, supervisor or chief) isn’t it rewarding when an underling accomplishes a task or completes a project to your satisfaction? It’s especially rewarding if you’ve trained this energetic, enthusiastic, eager-to-please employee to succeed? At the same time, if you’re a workerbee, you’ll undoubtedly agree how nice it is to get praise or recognition from your superior. Closing a sale, providing great customer service, addressing a company need, concern or problem can be incredibly rewarding if you recognize your own contribution as a productive member of the team. When you apply yourself and do your best, you’ll be surprised how fulfilling work can be thanks to recognizing the simple pleasures your role plays within the organization.
The end of the year is a chance to reevaluate where we are and where we ant to be over the next twelve months. The New Year brings everyone a new beginning, a chance to reinvent ourselves. This year, my lone resolution will be to truly appreciate life’s simple pleasures. If we learn to appreciate the simple pleasures in life, we can assuredly enhance our level of happiness as we endure our suburban existence. I may not have invented Facebook, but I may just post this life altering mantra for all my friends to read.
Leave a Reply