Maybe I should be blogging about my experience with writing, but to be honest, there are so many brilliant blogs out there on the subject, and written by real literary authorities that I wouldn't be contributing much.
What I really want to write about today is small details in life. We hear too much moaning nowadays. The prices, the service, the traffic... and yes, I'm not saying that these things aren't a pain, but I'm trying to look at all the positive things that surround me. All those small details we forget to notice as we run to school, go shopping or push ourselves into a stuffy underground (OK, finding pleasures here might be pushing it a bit too far, or even weird). But if we start taking more notice of our surroundings, we can draw snippets of happiness from those small pleasures, and after all, lots of little happy moments may add up to make a big treasure.
So here are a few things I like:
- I like the waxing moon against a brightening blue sky with the early morning light.
- I like to hear the cheerful (or demanding) tweet of a Robin welcoming me back home in the winter. A flash of red hopping from one branch to another.
- I like standing with my back to the fireplace and having to give a step forward when it becomes too hot.
- I like noticing how the cake has risen in the oven and anticipate the taste by the smell (just before my very annoying oven burns it; then I know exactly how it will taste).
- I like the excitement of children the night before their birthday or Christmas.
- I like reading something I can't remember having written and feeling quite proud of it.
- I like happy endings and books that leave me with a smile after I've finished it.
- I like the evening sky tinted in vivid reds, purples and oranges in the winter.
- I like opening my window in spring and hearing the distant sound (and distant is the key word here) of children in the school playground.
I could probably go on and on, but now it's your turn...
Those are wonderful pleasures, Sarah! I like all of those too, especially #2 and #5! I like how warm and fragrant my clothing is when it comes out of the dryer. I like eating a gooey hot chocolate chip cookie immediately out of the oven. I like when out of all their brand new toys, my nieces and nephews are playing with what I got them for Christmas or birthday because it makes me feel like the best aunt ever. I like staying in on the weekends with my hubby playing board games or watching a movie and eating yummy snacks.
ReplyDeleteIt's so good to remember the small happy things in life. Afterall, those are the things that make living so valuable. :)
I love the way my small granddaughter studies my face when I see her, and then - once she's registered who I am - her eyes light up and she gives me the biggest smile and I feel like I'm the one person in the world she wants to see.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely post, Sarah. There are so many details to treasure, but I think one of my favourites is walking through the woods just as winter turns to spring, and smelling all the little flowers under the earth who are waiting to be born.
ReplyDeleteI love soft blankets, the smell of rain, the sound of waves, the warmth of my tea mug, sunshine glinting on copper, wind rustling leaves...
ReplyDeleteLovely post!
Claire
Lovely, Sarah. I especially connect with the waxing moon against a clear early sky.
ReplyDeleteLovely post, Sarah! I love the sound and smell of the sea. It always makes me feel as if I have 'come home' even though I live too far away. One day I will live close enough to make sure that the sound and smell never leave me.
ReplyDeleteLovely post. I love the worn-down stone dip of my front door step, and the small brass sign on my front door (probably dating from the 18th century) which reads 'Please do not ring unless an answer is required.' I think of all the people whose feet wore away the stone, and the harassed 18th century cook or housewife who got so sick of answering the door to deliveries that she had the sign made. She obviously lived in times when you could leave food, logs etc at a front door and not expect them to be stolen. I love the feeling of being connected to those people who lived here before.
ReplyDeleteI like waking up and tweeting inconsequencialities to people I've started to get to know on Twitter. Even if I've never met them in person. Or am not likely to...
ReplyDeleteI really like sitting around a table with friends while eating something wonderful, drinking something bubbly, and laughing at silly stories we tell.
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely list,Sarah, and what an excellent idea for a blog posting.
ReplyDeleteI love the moment in a theatre when the lights dim, and you begin to be drawn into a world created by another person's imagination.
Liz X
Hello Sarah,
ReplyDeleteI am also an aspiring writer who is just getting started as well as an expat American living in Germany. I enjoyed your descriptions and hope to sharpen my talents in that direction too. Right now, I am working on plot structure and a timeline to get my ideas more concrete on paper.
Thanks for highlighting the details!
Cordially,
Chris
Children playing - always a joy.
ReplyDeleteA couple meeting at a railway station or airport, melting into each other with sheer delight at being together again.
The smell of mown grass (especially if someone else has cut it).
Packing my rucksack - that tingly-feeling when I'm off travelling again.
The silence of snow.
... isn't the world wonderful? There's so much to make us smile.
Fab blog Sarah which I have just discovered having recently joined twitter - so pleased I joined as I am now able to discover people like you - I shall follow you with interest. I love your point about re-reading something you had forgotten you had written - I kept journals all through childhood and my teens and occasionally get them out - it's like looking through the eyes of a different person!
ReplyDeleteMel