“It’s the little things,” is a phrase we so often use to describe that which proved meager in quantity, but immense in quality. Something small that brings us happiness. A sleepover with a friend, food finally coming at a restaurant, lightning bugs and beaches at night in the summer, sweatpants and a book on a rainy day — the little things.
Life is crazy and hectic and never seems to slow down when we need it to. We tend to live on this highway, always speeding to the next exit and forgetting to stop and appreciate where we are.
Life has the ability to pass us by in the blink of an eye. And yet, we often find ourselves neglecting to appreciate it and the things right in front of our faces. In the fear of missing out, we keep ourselves extremely busy, but often forget to stop and smell the roses. Take a step back and realize right now, the present, is an amazing place to be. The future can wait.
People unfortunately waste time idling in their own self-consciousness and worry. It is unfortunate that we must be reminded to live with no regrets. There is sadness in knowing our own subconscious minds often prevent us from going after the things we want to do. In this frenzy of worry, we become oblivious to the world around us and forget to live in the moment, whether that be awkward, amazing or terrible, it is a part of life we shouldn't let pass us by.
We need to learn the importance of sitting back and appreciating the little things in life, like a scenery we had never seen as beautiful before. I had never viewed the town surrounding my school as particularly charming. However, all it took was one night, looking at the town from a new location — the lights shining in the dark of the night — to make me value the beauty of this small area I had never shared much appreciation for before.
Our incessant need to live a life of hustling chaos, is what gives such value to the little things. Those summer nights on the beach, sleepovers with friends or sweatpants on a rainy day, bring such happiness and hold special places in our hearts. We appreciate these things, because as we live our hectic lives, the little things often pass us by. But when we allow ourselves to have an idle moment and make time to simply sit back and allow for some tranquility in our lives, we begin to notice the simple, yet valuable things that bring us happiness.
Think of how a day could be turned around by taking the time to appreciate your surroundings. My parents love to say “you’ll appreciate this some day.” But I have recently begun to wonder, why wait for some day? Learning to appreciate the present is much more important, waiting for some day is just another way to procrastinate.
