“It’s the little things in life.”

Cliche as it is I have come to realized recently how true it really is. Yesterday I had a really good sandwich for lunch and it just brightened my day. A classmate of mine always says hi to me when I see him and it just brightens my mood. When I see a squirrel find a piece of food and run bouncing off with it I imagine that he/she is just really happy.

It is really easy to focus on the negatives. “Ugh it’s snowing again” or “Wow I really don’t want to go workout” or “Should I sleep or study 10 more minutes?”. These may seem like little things, which they are, but they can have such a negative effect on our mindset and outlook on our lives. By taking the same situation and spinning it just a little bit those negative ideas can be changed to “Well imagine how pretty it will be when we wake up to a winter wonderland” or, “I can’t wait to see how strong I can get” or “I will be so proud of myself when I do well on this test”. It’s the little things.

When you get the right temperature in the shower right away, when your shampoo and conditioner run out at the same time, when you get to FaceTime your pets, when your mom sends you a picture of your fish and dog bonding, when the cafeteria has chocolate chip muffins. The little things can start off a day right, give you a glimpse of hope in an otherwise tough day or give a positive closure to a day that just didn’t go your way.

It’s the time you spend alone collecting your thoughts, it’s the time you spend with your closest friends making memories, it’s the little small talk conversations you have with the card swiper in the cafeteria, it’s when your car starts on the first try, it’s the peaceful early mornings when you wake up to finish studying, it’s when you take the time to clean your room and you feel so accomplished. It’s the little notes that everyone on your floor leaves for others to feel appreciated, it’s having someone paint your nails and actually waiting for them to dry so they are perfect, it’s opening a new tube of mascara, it’s when your roommate tells you there are tater tots in the cafeteria for breakfast. Whether it is something someone does for you, or you do for yourself, it’s the little things in life that make a difference.

In the midst of a blizzard of negative things happening in the world around us, sometimes all we have to cling to is the little things. The little things can be doing something nice for someone. It can be buying their coffee, writing a note in their textbooks, The little things don’t require a lot. Just a little thought, compassion and desire to make a small difference in someone’s or your own life. Enjoy the little things, do the little things, share the little things with others.