The holiday season is upon us, and for many people this means numerous trips to the mall or store of your choice to find the perfect gifts for everyone you care about in your life. The perfect present takes a lot of thought and effort in finding, and many of us take the task far too seriously. Though we have come to realize that giving is often a greater joy than receiving, there are many things that are much more important than presents in general. Over the holidays, we should all take the time to consider what truly matters in life. Even if you unwrap the box to find an awful sweater from a distant relative, you should know that so many things make you infinitely happier, and not let this trivial disappointment phase you.

1. Any moment in which you notice the beauty of the world around you and it takes your breath away

Sometimes my eyes sharpen in on the world around me and see the beauty of it all so clearly and it truly amazes me. I wish I could travel around the world and take in all the beautiful sites in one fell swoop but I think my mind might explode.

2. The happiness you get from hearing your favorite song that you forgot was your favorite song

There is honestly nothing better than turning on the radio and randomly hearing a song that you completely forgot about but love more than anything. There is no deeper joy, in my opinion.

3. Being surrounded by family

As corny as this one is, you know it's true. Family over everything.

4. Having friends who care about you

My friends are my rocks, and I definitely could not survive without them. Whether you have one best friend or ten, they are who you go to for everything and life is good because of them.

5. Uncontrollable laughter

I laugh at the stupidest things for extensive periods of time and still it's the best feeling in the world. Nothing can bring a laughing gal or guy down!

6. The fact that people are this talented, and so are you in some way

She did this with a freaking pen!! I mean I can't even fathom the talent this takes and it makes me so happy to know that everyone is this talented in some way, even if they don't know it

7. Love

The idea that there's someone out there for you, whether you've met them yet or not is so comforting and I LOVE it!

8. The ability to dream

The fact that we can dream in the sense of going to sleep and escaping reality is amazing in itself. But also the fact that we are ambitious and have goals that make life worth living is maybe even more amazing

9. Life

With everything going on in the world right now, we should all be especially grateful that we have a life to live. I can't imagine what some people in the world must be feeling right now, and if there is anything we can do to help I think we must do our best to forget our own issues and address the real problems of the world.

Presents are wonderful, I'll admit I love them as much as the next person. But, so many more things make me happier than gifts and I think it is important to take a step back this holiday season and focus on the greater things in life.