“When we lack proper time for the simple pleasures of life, for the enjoyment of eating, drinking, playing, creating, visiting friends and watching children at play, then we have missed the purpose of life.
Not on bread alone do we live but on all these human and heart-hungry luxuries. ” — Ed Hayes
Happiness has a lot to do with our ability to take delight from the day-to-day pleasures in our life. Here are fifteen simple ways to nurture your body and spirit.
photo credit: Pink Sherbet Photography
Use Scents to Delight Your Senses
- Take your favorite essential oil and rub it on the light bulbs in your bedroom. When you turn the light on the heat will diffuse the scent throughout the room.
- Light scented candles.
- Create this aromatherapy spray to freshen up your laundry:
4 drops lavender essential oil
2 drops peppermint essential oil
2 drops tea tree essential oil
2 cups of waterCombine all of the ingredients in a spray bottle and spray on freshly laundered clothes and linens.
Sharing Simple Pleasures with Others
“And in the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.” — Kahlil Gibran
- Buy all of the necessary ingredients for making tamales, invite a group of friends over, and make tamales in an assembly-like style. Open a bottle of wine for drinking as you cook. At the end of the evening everyone goes home with a pile of fresh tamales.
- Grab a good friend and go for a drive, with the windows down, and the car radio playing your favorite songs.
- Give your spouse or significant other a little journal that is only to be used for writing love notes to each other.
photo credit: Felix Francis
Make Mojitos – Ernest Hemingway’s Favorite Drink
A mojito is a Cuban cocktail traditionally made of five ingredients: rum, sugar, lime, carbonated water and mint. Here’s the original authentic recipe (from Taste of Cuba):
1 teaspoon powdered sugar
Juice from 1 lime (2 ounces)
4 mint leaves
1 sprig of mint
Havana Club white Rum (2 ounces)
2 ounces club soda
Place the mint leaves into a long mojito glass and squeeze the juice from a cut lime over it. You’ll want about two ounces of lime juice, so it may not require all of the juice from a single lime. Add the powdered sugar, then gently smash the mint into the lime juice and sugar with a muddler (a long wooden device) or the back of a fork or spoon if you don’t have access to a muddler. Add crushed ice then add the rum and stir, and top off with the club soda (you can also stir the club soda in as per your taste). Garnish with a mint sprig.
You can also try Faulkner’s favorite drink: Mint Julep.
For those of you who don’t drink alcohol, or have not reached the legal drinking age in your country, here’s a great recipe for Hawaiian punch: “The Best Ever Hawaiian Punch Recipe”.
photo credit: Sami Keinänen
There’s No Place Like Home
- Create a bouquet of hydrangeas and place it in a prominent spot in your home.
- Lie down on the couch with a great novel and some freshly brewed coffee served in your favorite mug (the one that’s chipped, but you simply don’t care).
- Make Crepes. Fill the crepe with nutella (a hazelnut spread with a chocolaty taste) and strawbery jam, and coat it with melted chocolate. Add nuts.
More Simple Pleasures
- Pitch a tent in your back yard and hangout under the stars. Roast marshmallows and tell ghost stories.
- Go to the park and play frisbee. Let your dog tag along.
- Get a big, juicy watermelon and savor it out on the porch.
- Place a birdbath in a safe spot in your garden and you’ll soon have birds dipping and splashing in the water. They’re readily available in home improvement stores and online, but you can also make your own using clay or terra cotta plant pots.
Boom De Ya Da! The World is Just Awesome!
The Discovery Channel created the video below to launch their campaign: “The World is Just Awesome!” Watch it and use it as inspiration to create your very own Boom De Ya Da video. Then add it to the collection of Boom De Ya Da videos already on YouTube.
For many more ideas on how to celebrate life, visit my Squidoo lens, “100s of Ways to Celebrate Life”.
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