Thursday 13 September 2007

Embarrassment of Riches

I was listening to Chris Moyles on the radio earlier this week and he was interviewing Paul McKenna about his new book, which is called something like 'I can make you rich'. PM was explaining that part of the book deals with improving yourself financially but the bulk of it is to do with actually assessing the parts of your life that are already rich. So, the pleasure you get when you watch a sunset or spend an evening with friends, that sort of thing.

It made me think about all the good things in my life. I've spent a lot of time on here angsting about this and that recently, so sometimes it's good to properly reflect on the more positive aspects.


How it feels when my children hug me - even if I do always have to grab the teen and stand on her foot to hold her down and make her :)

The amazing feeling of pride when my children achieve a new step on the ladder of maturity. Just watching them grow up and learning to be independent of me.

I work with kids every day and the pleasure I get from their welcoming smiles and waves when they see me.

Snuggling up in bed with a hot water bottle and a good book.

The exhilaration of completing a really exciting training session where you know you've achieved something mentally and physically... even the ones where it's only exhaustion.

The smell of clean, freshly pressed laundry.

The satisfaction of a house well cleaned.

Relaxing in my pool with my eyes closed after completing the number of lengths I set myself that morning, with the sun on my face and the reflection of the ripples on the water against my closed eyelids.

That moment when a new song comes on the radio and it hooks you completely so you can't stop singing little bits of it in your head. Then every time you hear the first few bars of the introduction, you get that bubbly feeling of anticipation deep inside.

The warm camaraderie of a chat on msn or googlemail with a good friend.

The kindness of people who don't have to care but do anyway.

The thrill of watching my new blog header appear before my eyes thanks to the efforts of Angela-la, a very special friend.





The excitement of the drive to Ruf's, my body tingling at the prospect of the hours ahead.

Lying on the sofa watching a film with him, cuddled into the circle of his arm with my head on his shoulder and my hand stroking his chest hair.

Snuggling under the duvet with him when we make that cocoon of love and wrap it around each other before dozing off.

When he wakes in the middle of the night, pulls me into him and kisses the back of my neck or my shoulder.

Every time we make love... nuf said x




Just thinking about all the things that give me pleasure, that soft warm glow in the pit of my stomach, I understand that I am truly blessed.



I'm wondering how many of you have suddenly realised that you are also millionaires?



13 comments:

n said...

The look on my girls face when i tell her she can stop up and watch x factor, snuggled up between us in her softy nighty........priceless x

Vi said...

Yep you certainly are rich!

Jackie Adshead said...

Yes, these are the things that make us rich - money just buys a different sort of misery!

His Ladye said...

I find something new be thankful for and to remind myself how rich I am almost every day. There are challenges we all live, we have to remind ourselves of the good things when we have a down moment. Thank you for reminding me to be more secure in my riches.

Ladye

Jenny said...

What a lovely post - I was telling someone the other day that we should add up our "riches" everyday... and I do.

BTW - Love the new header.. it finally kicked into my server, or whatever it is.

BenefitScroungingScum said...

I love the new header too.

For me it was a gradual rather than sudden realisation of how truly blessed I am. Nothing really worth having is ever easy, nor can it be bought financially..... though the pool sounds good ;) BG

kimba said...

Lovely post cake girl..:)
I reckon I need to do this too.. xx

Constance said...

It is True, Cake, it is true.... and it makes me very happy indeed...

Karen said...

My mother always taught me to always count my blessings for there are always many people worse off than us. How true.

Love the new header, it looks great.

Anonymous said...

Hello, cupcake! It sounds soppy, but I am profoundly grateful for what I have, which always seem to me to be more significant than the things I don't have. If you've been right down to the bottom, it makes you appreciative of what is waiting for you as you float back up.

Joanna Cake said...

n - that's a nice image. When my two were younger, they used to love being allowed to have a special treat like that.

Vi - it's only when you list stuff out like that, that you realise.

Jackie - I bet having lots of money makes it easier to ignore the bad side tho :)

Ladye - I guess with your recent health problems, you understand the transience of happiness better than any of us.

AB - Thank you x2

BG - the pool is fab, especially when the kids are at school and I dont have to run the gauntlet of hundreds of spotty teenagers to get in it.

Kimba, Annie, Gypsy - I think counting our blessings is definitely something we should do regularly. It is so easy to forget how lucky we really are.

z - oh, i like that thought very much :)

DJ Kirkby said...

Excellent post! Oh and I love listening to Radio 1 too.

Anonymous said...

That is a gorgeous header... and we should always count our blessings, you're right. Thanks for the reminder.