Simple Pleasures

My wife Sue recently tagged me in one of the latest challenges that have been going around social media. It's called the "5 Days of Blessings" challenge, and the idea is to share 3 things that you are thankful for during the course of 5 days, and to tag 3 people to join you in the process. I'm on Day 2 of the challenge and this was my Facebook update:

Today I give thanks for the simple pleasures of life:

1) For the privilege of driving my wife Sue to her counselling sessions each week; enjoying the long drive in the car while listening to our newest favourite radio station Lite 94.6FM and partaking in some of the most meaningful conversations about life, love, marriage and parenting :)

2) For the simple joy of sitting at a coffee shop and tucking into my morning nourishment of a good book, enjoyed with a coney dog, hash brown and a glass of Kopi O Bing.

3) For the privilege of reflecting on life, on parenting; and being blessed with the gift of writing all of these on my heart and on my blog/Facebook/notepad.

I am indeed greatly blessed :)

My Facebook photo depicting the simple pleasures of my life.

There are indeed many simple pleasures to be thankful for. I was enjoying the scene from the coffee shop yesterday morning and gave thanks that I even have a job that allows me the flexibility to just sit still and reflect on life. (I wrote an earlier post about the importance and value of thinking and reflecting, and you can read that here.)

The location where I spend many waking moments reflecting on life.

Why do we need to appreciate the simple pleasures of life?

I think it's because life as we know it is already too complicated, and if we spend all our waking moments pondering about the complexities and mysteries of life, then we will allow ourselves no respite from an already busy life. And this, I believe, is the beginning of a long battle with the stress monster.

I thoroughly enjoy the moments when I spend my time writing over a hearty meal and a
good cup of coffee!

As a husband and a father, life is extremely hectic. The demands imposed on you by one kid is magnified manifold when you have a second child. And I believe this process is exponential if you have three or more children. How then do you cope with the pressures of parenthood? Well, you can totally escape from the situation and leave the home (I was talking recently to a mother in her mid-20s, and this is what her husband did). Or, you can take time out; a breather from the hurricane of everyday life, and enjoy some simple moments - before plunging back into life with all its hustle and bustle.

Special moments with my Dearie. Many precious words
have been exchanged over food.

In essence, enjoying the simple pleasures of life provide a brief respite from the stressors of everyday life; and they allow us to reflect on what's important, providing us with the opportunity to make adjustments to how we live our lives. This, I believe, is the secret to living a meaningful and fulfilling life!

I don't always look forward to walks with the boys after a long and
exhausting day, but I know I always enjoy those special times afterwards!

I have been beginning to enjoy reading with the kids. It's not only a special "Daddy" thing, but the
teacher in me is always looking for new ways to help them learn.

Always thankful to the One who has all things possible.

"When we lay the soil of our hard lives open to the rain of grace and let joy penetrate our cracked and dry places, let joy soak into our broken skin and deep crevices, life grows. How can this not be the best thing for the world? For us?"

-Ann Voskamp, "One Thousand Gifts"

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