Re-learning the value of Awesome!

Just a small little post today, in an effort for us to start off this year remembering to give thanks to many of the small, seemingly inconsequentially positive things that might happen to us over the course of our day.  It's all too easy to find the negative, or to have others point it out for you should you have missed it (god forbid!), but it's often difficult to recognise the small moments, those fleeting, tiny, positive moments that can make life so sweet and put us back in touch with ourselves and what really matters

This is the basis for Neil Pasricha's award-winning website http://www.1000awesomethings.com/ and the associated bestseller - The Book of Awesome.  In an effort to refocus himself during some difficult times in his life, Neil began his Awesome blog... simply to remind himself to be more mindful of the good things he had in his life, rather than only focusing on the bad.  His posts resonated with readers and went viral!  Why do we celebrate only the big positive moments in our lives, rather than celebrating all of the small, feel-good moments we experience?  Failing to do so means that they often slip by us without an impact, not awakening us to the myriad number of moments in our day that we could be experiencing some joy.

Awaken your inner 3-year old, the part of you that felt joy and wonder in experiencing things for the first time.  Let your heart lead you.

The Work:

Create an ongoing Awesome List of your own.  At the end of each day add to it at least one new moment you experienced that day that brought you some joy.   Remember... they needn't be huge, but they do need to be heartfelt.  You may find it difficult to start but will likely get better at recognising these moments each day and may be hard pressed not to jot down a number of them each day.

Some of my recent moments?

• the sigh of pleasure in taking my first sip of  Chai latte each morning.  Heaven!
• the first night sleeping in clean, crisp new sheets
• the purity of looking out at fresh, newly fallen snow - before anyone has walked on it - as it blankets the lawns and roads, coats the trees.  It makes even the drabbest of views look cleansed and magical
• the smell of a freshly sharpened pencil (yep, likely this is just a 'me' thing, but I love the smell and prefer regular old pencils to mechanical ones just for this moment!)
• the unmitigated pleasure of eating... Jello.  Sucking it off the spoon through your lips, squirting it through your teeth, rolling it on your tongue.  Instant childhood!
• the moment when someone stops their car to create a break in traffic for me to cross the road to the park with my dog in the morning, rather than leaving me to stand there forever waiting to get across.  I love this person!
• that very first moment when the seat warmer in my car kicks into gear, taking the chill out of my leather seats.  Blesses upon the person who first thought of installing this into cars.  Indebted forever to you!

What's your list?  Don't hesitate to put down anything that comes to mind, that makes you more appreciative of who you are, what you have, what you do... that makes your life special and... well... Awesome!