Things That Make Me Happy
I’ve learned to love myself, becoming happy with who I am, flaws and all. I started to prioritise myself first by doing things that make me happy, boosting my self-esteem. It is important to prioritise and make sure that you do things that make you happy because it improves your motivation as it makes you know yourself more and what you need to exceed in life.
There are different things that make me happy, and these are just a few:
One thing that makes me happy is dance parties/workouts. When I’m alone in my house I blast my music and dance around my room like no one is watching. This helps me forget about all my problems, keeping me in the present and reminds me that life is too short to not have a good time. Sometimes we get so hooked on technology but taking time to just be crazy jumping around your room makes me feel alive. I also enjoy dance workouts.
To me, they are way better than a regular workout with reps and sets. It loosens you up and you get lost in the music, you don’t realise how long you have been working out because it’s so much fun. Having moments when I’m just living without a care in the world gives me time to realise, I can enjoy life in my own company. It also makes me laugh when I nearly fall over which happens most times because I’m quite clumsy or when I mess up a move in the dance workout, but I get right back on it.
Another activity that makes me happy is going to local small bakeries with my boyfriend. I didn’t start doing this until two years ago, my boyfriend gave me an almond croissant from my local bakery. It was amazing so we made it a habit to go to the bakery every Saturday morning to treat ourselves. I have tried so many different baked goods I couldn’t choose a favourite like their raspberry and pistachio danish and lemon meringue tarts. This makes me happy because it gives me an early start to the day and walking to the bakery in the morning is very relaxing.
It gives me and my boyfriend time to talk and laugh about life either getting into dumb conversations like who is the main character in the Big Bang theory or deep conversations about our future i.e., moving in together. It makes me happy when I support businesses that are small because I’m getting to try new baked goods while helping the community around me. We also become a regular to the point we can chat with the people at the business. Recently, we found another bakery not as close, but we still want to try something new. We got amazing white chocolate cookies, biscoff and red velvet cupcakes.
A third aspect of my life that makes me happy is going on long walks and hikes. I started doing this during lockdown to clear my mind and get fresh air. I used to hate walking; I would get tired each time I would have to walk up a hill. Now I go on sometimes hour-long walks, no music, no phone just to live fully in the present thinking about what I want in my life.
Going on walks with friends and family is something that makes me happy, catching up about life and what we got up to that day. I also enjoy hiking at the Campsies, which is about a 40-minute drive from where I stay. I usually go with my boyfriend and my friend we just have a laugh while taking on the scenic view of Glasgow. Hiking is so much fun as well because you can discover so many new things like waterfalls, wildlife, and views. It's difficult to deny the grace of natural life. As a person who struggles with anxiety, it really helps with my mental health because the sights around me take me out of the chaos in the constant rush into the environment where it’s calming. I also learn new things like the countryside code, which is when you say hi to everyone you meet in passing.
Another activity is learning a new song, whether I learn it through singing or on the keyboard. Music is a passion of mine it totally relaxes me and takes away all anxiety. I learned how to sing in school, and I sang for my music exam. I don’t know what it is, but I can get up and sing in front of people, no problem. However, having to go up and present something is a total fear of mine. I love hearing a song and making out my mission to learn it.
On the keyboard I try and learn the pattern of the notes section by section then I put it together. I feel like I learn more when I do it and expand my knowledge. When I’m singing a new song, I have to listen to it many times to hear all the notes and then I just go for it. Once I’m comfortable with it I start to add my own creative choices which helps me feel more freedom. I always try and choose a song that takes me a while to learn because they have all these crazy riffs in them that are so impressive. The song I’m trying to learn just now is “Don’t You Worry ‘bout a Thing” Tori Kelly cover original by Stevie Wonder. The bit I’m stuck at is from 1:55 until 2:06.
A final thing is having regular date nights with my boyfriend even though we have many days together baking, listening to music and having cosy nights in. It’s nice to get dressed up and go to a nice restaurant to share amazing food. It’s also nice to do an activity for date night like going out to play bowling or mini golf, getting away from the troubles of life it takes us away from how busy life is with university just time for us to connect even more. Having our regular date nights help us overall in our communication making it more clear to each other because it builds the relationship's strength, which is crucial for both of us in difficult moments. It also makes me realise that I want to spend the rest of my life with this person.
When I’m having fun with my boyfriend I think about our relationship and everything we have experienced together and how we have both been there for each other during times when we needed an extra hand to get to our goals in life. We also go out during the day to explore Scotland going to castles. This time is special to me because whilst we are driving there, we play music and have a laugh along the way. Having regular days out and date night creates amazing memories together that you can tell stories about like the time we went to Largs for the day and camped overnight. The weather was horrible, we stayed up all night together chatting, laughing, and listening to music which was the memorable part.
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