December Musings - Finding And Creating Special Moments!

Come December, and nostalgia starts setting in.

There's something bittersweet about the last month of the year. An impending sense of ending looms ahead, along with the promise of new and probably better beginnings. 

I had actually planned to start a sort of an advent calendar, trying to make every day of December special by assigning a fun - activity for each day of the month. I painstakingly prepared a list of activities. 

But then, the prospect of doing something new everyday feels daunting. It feels like there is so much pressure to make the day special. It shouldn't be so, right? I mean, what is the point of doing something that is intended for enjoyment but feels like a chore? So I more or less gave up on the list. 

But life has a funny way of catching us by surprise. Without any intention or plan, the day indeed felt special. And the best part - I didn't have to go out of my way to make it special.

I could wake up early and enjoy the time before morning dawned cloudy and slightly breezy (an effect of the cyclone currently hovering over South India). It was bliss to drink coffee while reading the newspaper and listening to songs on the Rangoli show in DD. But this is mostly how Sunday mornings are for me. 

The weather was dark, gloomy and perfect to enjoy an afternoon nap and also to snuggle beside the window of my house with a book and a cup of coffee. As someone who loves rainy days, coffee and books, this was sheer bliss!

In the evening, my husband and I set off for a walk. It had drizzled a bit and petrichor, divine, life-giving petrichor invaded and invigorated our senses. The climate was awesome - still cloudy with a slightly cold breeze blowing. This walk itself was a special part of the day, as we both don't get many opportunities to go for walks as we used to before.

And the night was a whole new vibe, thanks to the songs that the kid made me listen to, which is again something that we rarely do together. Most of the time he listens while I work in the kitchen. It was fun to listen to songs and jam with the kid!

Most importantly, today taught me that we need not 'create' any special moments to feel happy. Happiness or special moments can be found in the ordinary, day-to-day activities that we do, if only we perceive them with gratitude and humility.

The icing on the cake - I could write a blog today after a hiatus of almost two months. 

And that's how the first day of the last month went by. I hope to write everyday but then there is no surety of finding special moments every day. But maybe, maybe, they will find me if I have the right perception and mindset to see the extraordinary in the ordinary, and the special in the mundane.