Little Things

Jan 10, 2008 - 16:29 PM PST

I was at GameStop today returning a game I didn't want anymore and I saw a boy jumping up and down holding a game. It was and older game for N64.. simple and cheap. All this boy wanted was this game. He begged and begged his mother for the game. She was hesitant and reluctantly said she would buy it. This boy was so happy and so excited, it made me start to think. When did we as adults stop letting the little things excite us?

Where does it say in the handbook in life that as adults we have to give up letting the little things make our day for responsibility and bitterness? When is that magical age that turns us from simple human beings into complicated cynical people. I can’t remember the last time I let something small make my day, nor have I witnessed it from people I know.

The boy’s mother was so unhappy to get this game for her son. It was inexpensive, no more than $10. It wasn’t a pricey new game for a new console. I would think she’d be happy he wanted something cheaper rather than a $60 game. Perhaps she was thinking it was a waste of her money to buy a game rather than something to help this boy for his future. Who knows. I know that if it were my son I’d be enthralled to know that something I got him made him so happy.

Something small can happen to us and we blow it off. If we’re running late to work and someone lets us in a busy onramp to the freeway, we don’t think anything of it. Instead of being grateful that it may have gave us a few extra minutes, we grumble at the fact there is traffic. Maybe we get a gift of money when we have a large bill to pay. Instead of thinking, “Oh this will help, even a little, to lower this payment,” we may think, “Why couldn’t I have gotten more money? This isn’t going to pay this off.” As adults we seem to focus everything around what we have to do to survive. Bills, work, responsibilities. Maybe once a week we put these things aside and go out and party or go out with friends. Instead of one day a week, why not everyday? Instead of going out to party or going out with friends, why don’t we enjoy the little things?

I challenge those who read this to pay close attention to your day. If something small happens, focus on it. Push everything else aside for a moment and soak up what happened. Whether you found $5 on the ground or someone praises you for a job well done, enjoy it. Let it make your day. I strongly believe if once a day we let the small things fill us with joy we will be a happier population. If we take the time each day to have the bliss of a child I think it will make a small impact on people we encounter. It will make us just a little less bitter, put a little bounce in our step. It may just be one small way we start to change the world, you never know.