Savoring Simple Daily Pleasures
When I gradually awoke this morning, I'm fairly certain I had a smile on my lips before my eyes even fluttered open. Somewhere in my subconscious I knew it was Saturday, and as I began to awaken, I became aware of the gentle dawn light, the bird song, and the delicious knowledge it was the weekend.
Early Saturday morning is possibly my most favorite time of the entire week. The weekend stretches ahead- even if its a busy one, usually I've had a little more precious sleep than a regular weeknight. In those precious, treasured quiet moments on a Saturday, my sincere gratitude for the life I am living seems to almost brim over.
As I lay there deliciously cosy this morning, before even stretching my limbs or turning to see if my beloved was also awake, I was flooded with thankfulness and contentment for the simplest things I was able to enjoy and savor. Dawn light creeping though our open drapes earlier and earlier as we approach the summer months, the birds equally glad of it and singing their unique songs- the Tuis, Black Birds and the Thrushes are providing a musical delight. The house and neighborhood are still and quiet, the sky is shades of gray with rain on the horizon, and my day will involve simple tasks, activities and pleasures- walks, coffee at a favorite cafe, housework, writing and preparing a nutritious family meal for this evening before a bubble bath and climbing into freshly laundered sheets with my book.
I took a rare moment to sit up in bed watching the birds sipping a hot lemon water, discussing the day and various other things with my husband before rousing a daughter for her Saturday job, and getting ready for a walk with a friend.
I couldn't describe a more perfect day really, even if I was to design my ideal early spring weekend at home. Add in weather conducive to hanging laundry on the line, a spot of golf, time with my family, and mowing the lawns, sprinkle in some home baking and time for a pot of tea and wrap it up with the contented and accomplished feeling of a clean home, a fully stocked kitchen and being organized for a new week by Sunday evening, and you have the magical formula! Very uncomplicated really!
Simple everyday luxuries.
Other than the negligible cost of the coffee (And we must remember for little indulgences like this we aren't just paying for the coffee, but the ambience, service, view and atmosphere- the ceremony and ritual of walking the nearly 5 Kilometers, uphill mostly, for the reward of the perfect oat milk flat white, and the less challenging return trip,) the morning hasn't cost a thing.
Much of this is down to mind set, if we choose to see these moments of simplicity as something to savor, as something special and to be cherished and appreciated, life becomes all the richer for it.
Choosing to notice all the things we can miss if we are too concerned with what others deem as luxurious or special. Look up at the night sky, watch the suns rays pierce through a cloud, take note of how you feel at home when you are relaxed and contented, when you have people you love close by, when your laundry smells of fresh air and sunshine, when you notice those first shoots of spring or the tight bright buds suddenly appear on the trees after wintering, equally as the greens turn into the golden hues of autumn- Soak it all up, breath it in. These gems and jewels, these "ordinary" moments are what make up our everydays and they are equally special.
While the seasons begin to show their changing more prominently, I am enthusiastic about having some time to have a thorough spring clean over the next few weeks, getting the house ready for summer, cleaning and re arranging out door furniture and tending to the garden and some planting, and a task I get huge satisfactions from- changing out my seasonal wardrobe- flushing out any clutter, rehoming items, streamlining, and being reunited with old favorites which have been stored away.
3 more weeks of school term then a break to really savor, change pace and embrace the coming summer and all its gifts. I cannot wait!
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