Today’s blog post is based on a prompt I saw on WordPress a couple of months back. The prompt sounded interesting and so I wrote it down and today decided to write a blog post on it.

Let’s start with defining what happiness is. Happiness is a very subjective experience and difficult to define precisely, as it can mean different things to different people. Broadly, happiness can be described as a positive emotional state that is characterised by feelings of joy, contentment, satisfaction, and well-being. Some people may experience happiness as a fleeting emotion that arises in response to a particular event or circumstance, while others may view it as a more enduring state of being that is influenced by a range of factors, including personal values, social relationships, life experiences, and mental and physical health.

There are many different theories about what contributes to happiness, including a sense of purpose, social connectedness, self-esteem, financial security, health, and positive emotions. However, the specific factors that contribute to happiness can vary depending on individual circumstances, cultural backgrounds, and personal preferences.

What makes one person happy may not necessarily bring joy to another. Some things that one does daily that bring positivity to our lives include exercising, spending time with loved ones, doing something creative, being grateful, spending time with nature, and probably the most basic of all, smiling.

Some of the everyday things that bring me happiness daily are

Coffee: I enjoy my first cup of coffee. I wake up at least an hour before everyone else and before I start my chores of the day, that first cup of coffee, drunk slowly and reflectively in a quiet house, in semi-darkness is sheer bliss. I don’t have to talk to anyone until the caffeine hits my system and once I am done with the coffee, I am energised to start the day.

Meditation: After coffee, the next thing that brings a smile to my face is my daily meditation session. I have written in detail about meditation and the benefits it brings to an individual, so I won’t repeat them here. But meditating regularly has changed my thinking and my stress and anxiety levels are very manageable now. If you are not meditating regularly, try it once and see what I mean. Today, if I don’t meditate any day, I feel something is missing that day.

Spending time with my children: As much as I love being alone, I also love spending time with BB & GG. Evenings and afternoons spent talking to them and finding out what makes them tick is a real mood booster. And the cuddle sessions we used to have when they were younger were such a serotonin booster that sometimes, even today, we try to get in a cuddle session or two.

Exercise: I am probably the world’s least fit person, but I love my daily dose of walking. I try to walk a minimum number of steps daily and if by 6 pm, these steps are not in, something feels off. The satisfaction I get when I hit my daily step target is so good that a person needs to do it to experience it.

Reading: Regular readers of my space know that I consider myself a bookworm and wear that label as a badge of honour. I am constantly reading and a day not spent reading feels like I did nothing that day. So this is something that brings a smile to my face whenever I read, especially if it is something that hooks me from page one.

And as a bonus, writing: I love writing and have to write something daily. I am not a very good writer but it’s the thought that counts, right? So writing brings me joy and on most days a smile on my face when a sentence is beautifully constructed.

So there you go, six things I enjoy doing daily that make me happy. What about you? What do you do to put a smile on your face every day? Make sure you do something that brings a smile to your face and brings you joy and happiness. It can be something as simple as hugging your family, but make sure you do something that makes you look back on the day with a smile.