LAUREN LIVES

A couple of weeks ago, my mom messaged my brothers and I this:

“What if you woke up today with only the things you gave thanks for yesterday?”

It stuck with me. I’ve mentioned before on this little blog of mine, about how this year I am trying to put more emphasis on living simply; on enjoying fully. And giving thanks goes hand in hand with that pursuit. Because I think a lot of the time, it’s the little things in the daily grind that get overlooked. It’s easy to be thankful for a raise at a work, a planned trip with friends or a loved one, or an opportunity to upgrade in some area of our lives. But what about the small things? What about just waking up? How often do we say a silent thank you for that?

Last Monday at work, a coworker of mine who had just bought a house and was lamenting over some renovations, said to me, “Lauren, the lesson here is this: Don’t overlook what you’ve got now, cus one day you’ll realize it wasn’t so bad after all.”

When the universe wants you to get a message, it always finds a way.

I often look at my dog and think, he’s got it figured out. He doesn’t require a lot to be happy. A walk in the morning; he likes to feel the grass between his toes, always relieving himself in the same spot. A bowl of food twice a day; he never complains about the stagnant menu. The sunny spot on the carpet to take a nap; he’s so content, he doesn’t even open his eyes when you walk by him. He’s got the company of his mom and dad, brushing up against us when he walks by to let us know that he’s noticing us. He uses the same dingy apartment carpeting to scratch his back when the moment strikes; the look on his face one of pure bliss.

Why do we bog ourselves down with so much excess? Why can’t we just be thankful for a sunny spot on the floor to nap in?

We can.

There’s a reason that the “olden days” are referred to as “the simpler times.” There was less distraction. Less consumerism. Less looking at everyone else’s lives and comparing ours to theirs. We thought less about what we wanted, and more about what we already had.

I guess I’m just on the pursuit of gratitude for the simpler things in life. Of removing the excess; of seeing the beauty of what got us all here in the first place. The conversations over a cup of coffee in the mornings with my husband. The act of making a meal together. A commute to work that involves the movement of my own two legs. The pride of something coming together from the work of my own two hands. The light reflecting against the water as the sun disappears at the horizon. That little patch of sunshine on the carpet…

What if you woke up tomorrow, with only the things you gave thanks for yesterday?

– xo !