This makes me happy.

I’ve got some good news. I have finally finished that spin-off novel I promised several years ago – a friends to lovers romance for Kadyn and Shae! My editor is working her magic, my beta readers have a draft in their hot little hands, and I have secured a stunning cover I can’t wait to share with you all. Finally, it is all coming together with a tentative release date in March. This has without a doubt been a labor of love, with challenges and distractions seemingly insurmountable at times. I am so happy to be nearing the finish line. 

Speaking of happy… after spending the last few years navigating a global pandemic and merely surviving… I have discovered I need to work on that… on being happy. The New Year’s resolution I have chosen for 2023 is to engage in more activities that make me happy. An integral part of that is trying to figure out what makes me happy. One strategy I have chosen to adopt is acknowledging when something makes me happy… literally stating aloud, “This makes me happy,” even when that feeling is fleeting. 

I have learned a few things already. While trying to pinpoint what makes me happy, I have discovered it truly is the little things. It is snuggling with my dogs, walking with my daughter, and a crisp blue sky. It is seeing leafless trees turn silver in the moonlight, a dusting of snow, and cozy socks. It is having a real conversation on the phone with my friends (instead of texting). It is chucking pistachios at my mom and seeing her initial confusion and disbelief morph into laughter. It is giving and receiving hugs, kissing my husband, sleeping in, and binge-watching Bridgerton. It is that precise moment each week when I finish grading for the classes I am teaching. It is the kind words my students share at the end of the semester. It is learning something new, engaging with someone new, and hearing a friend’s child has finally busted out of the hospital. It is seeing my daughter’s labs looking so good, it is a clean house, a warm cup of coffee, a piece of chocolate while it is melting in my mouth. It’s a completed task. It’s a Yoga stretch. It’s witnessing a good deed, it is helping someone in need, and… finishing my novel.

While I wasn’t surprised to discover these things make me happy, what I did find surprising is how frequently I feel happy. As odd as this may sound, I think I was allowing these moments to slip past me unnoticed. Now that  my “happy radar” is on, I am more aware and appreciative of these moments. 

The last few years have been difficult for all of us. It is long past time we carve out some happiness in the midst of this insanity… to find joy… to move past surviving and savor life. I hope you will join me in adopting strategies that will help you find your happy. If you do, let me know what you find. I would love to hear what makes you happy.