Joy in the little things

Big things are happening in quick succession in my life. Time is moving entirely too fast for my liking. I recently got my learner's permit, opened a bank account, and now I'm evaluating my employment opportunities. Freshman year just flew by. Summer will be an even faster blur. I've been freaking out a bit. Before I know it I'll be choosing a collage and then I'll be choosing my career path and then getting a job and starting a family and having a midlife crisis. Life is crazy, and I want to enjoy it. I keep feeling like I need to live up every bit of life, because it goes quick and is unpredictable. Today I chose to channel my inner child and stop and smell the roses. I was shopping at the thrift store today (half off sale, whoop whoop) and there was a fine spinney office chair just begging to be spun. So I happily obliged. As the rotations were slowing down an older lady came around the corner and gave me a disapproving look. Hmmmm. I wasn't okay with that. I can be a mature teenage who can enjoy a high quality office chair. So I made a GIF to subtly fight back against the joykills of the world. Just because I'm doing big things doesn't mean I can't get excited about things like coloring books and bubbles and swings.

Earlier this week I made a declaration that I was going to be more spontaneous this summer. This evening tropical storm Bill gave me the perfect opportunity to be impulsive. My family was just cleaning up from dinner when the dark, ominous clouds above my house burst. Water simply poured. It was 8 o'clock at night, but there was still plenty of light to be had. The air was warm and thick. The rain itself was lukewarm. I couldn't help myself. I went and ran around in the rain. It was wonderful. Warm rain is the trippiest thing. This is only the 2nd tropical storm I've been involved in and it was so magical. I was soaked to the bone, but it was so entirely worth it. Here are some low quality phone pictures.

See, my point is that life will happen faster than you can comprehend it, and we should embrace life with it's ups and downs, because our life is not in our control, and you'll never know what will happen. I feel like we think we should embrace our lives in big ways like going backpacking across Europe or writing a book, and of course these are fantastic, but I believe that the way we choose to view the little things is what makes the difference. Go and embrace that little child within you. Children know how to make any situation a little more fun, and they are on the lookout for the exciting things in life. Find that in yourself. Choose to make everyday a tad bit more special. Do the unexpected.