Enjoy The Small Things Too

By: Shiva Sharma

Made by Ann Sophi Digsmed - https://www.redbubble.com/i/art-board-print/Enjoy-life-in-Fiat-500-by-AnnsophiDigsmed/40756530.NVL2T

I think most people have made the same mistake as me growing up and forget to enjoy the small things in life. When you're a kid, you want to finally grow up and experience life. It's hard to imagine that there's anything more exciting than what the future holds for you; at least this was the way I thought. The only thing I had on my mind was what I was going to be 10 or even 20 years from now and I worked my butt off in school to make sure I would reach my future goals. I skipped parties, slept less, and spent no time improving myself as an individual. There was this idea in my head that I could catch up on the enjoyment I missed when I was younger because I would have all this money and free time when I got a job. I had all these goals and aspirations in life that I did not really care about anything unless it helped me reach those.

My uncle, who is a senior, has had a lot of time to reflect on the achievements and mistakes that he has made in life. His wisdom has been shaped by his ability to slow down during days that seem hectic and just appreciate the smallest moments. One day my uncle was having a conversation with my mom, and I hear him talking about some hippie stuff like “enjoy every moment in life no matter how small it is”. I am 17, have a massive ego, and assume I know more than basically everyone in the room, so hearing him say that made me angry because how do you achieve anything if you are wasting your time paying attention to everything going on. I go up to him and I am letting him get a piece of my mind, but he just looks at me and says “you know you're cute when you're red in the face”... now at this point, I'm on the verge of blowing up. My ego is in shambles if I'm being honest. How do you respond to that?

But he looks at me and says achieving your goals is important, but you will keep making goals and this cycle won't let you reach freedom. The real freedom you get is when you take a step back and enjoy every moment in life, even the moments where a kid is “losing his mind”. Looking back, it hurt when I realized that I did not have many memories growing up. I could barely remember the nights I spent studying, in all honesty. The academic success I had was nice, but enjoying the occasional party would have been nice too.

I am 20, and it's scary knowing I will never really figure everything out, but who really has everything figured out anyways? Trying to slow down and enjoy the small things in life, like seeing my mom smile is oddly comforting now. I have so many things in life I want to do, but I am enjoying the journey more than achieving the actual goal now. When I’m a senior, I’m hoping I can look back and feel satisfied with what I have done and become.