Day 302: Milestones and Play

In all of the excitement the past few days with visiting family and Trader Joe's, I completely missed the fact that I made it passed the Day 300 mark. I am now on Day 302. It feels fantastic to have succeeded in making it this far, Finding Happy every day. I know I mentioned before how great it felt to finally make it to first one milestone and then another, but this particular milestone really feels like an accomplishment. It was so difficult in the beginning to imagine how Finding Happy every day for 300 days would look and now that day is here. It hasn't always been easy, though even on the most difficult days it has been possible to pull myself sufficiently out of a funk to find something happy or positive in my day. Having gone through some of the darker days, I feel that I really can relate to others who have even more difficult things to get through. I know in my heart and in my soul that it IS possible to Find Happy each day, regardless of what I am going through. Whether it is in acknowledging the simple fact that I have been blessed with another day of life, whether it be that I saw a gorgeous sunset, a pretty flower or a majestic tree shimmering with autumn leaves or whether it be that I got to hug each one of my brother's kids, happiness has been sought and found.

But one thing that particularly makes me happy today is the concept of serious play. I have a nearly seven year old nephew who really loves to play. I got to spend just under twenty-four hours playing with him recently and it was so much fun. We played hind-and-go-seek, we played tag, we played steam roller, we played outside on the swing-set, we collected seashells and we played with building blocks and dinosaur eggs. It was serious play and serious fun. My husband and I are pretty playful together ourselves and especially for our age but playing with a youngster really shows me how important it is to keep my own imagination alive and well. It is amazing how imaginative and resourceful a child can be and it is a good reminder to not take life so seriously. If you haven't played really hard in a while, I strongly encourage you to go to the nearest park, get on a swing and swing as high as you can. Bring a friend along and play on the see-saw too. Draw pictures together with magic markers or crayons and really allow your inner child to come out. See if it opens your imagination in other areas of your life as well. I dare you.

Nothing better than a swing and a friend to swing with...