I’ve been shown, time and time again, the importance of having something in your day to look forward to. For most of us, that can’t always be something big like a trip, or a concert, etc. Sometimes it can be as small as adding a little whimsy to your life.
I actually had to resort to doing a little research on how to add whimsy, because I wasn’t coming up with ideas on my own. Some people do it via their wardrobe. I’m not there yet. So what are my other options?
Many years ago, I was in Regina, SK, Canada, on a work trip. Since I had a few hours to kill, I went to the Saskatchewan Science Centre. It happened to be at the same time as the joy exhibit. It was kind of life-changing. Part of the life-changing part was a TED talk by Ingrid Fetell Lee entitled “Where Joy Hides and How To Find It.”
In the video, she talks about her research into joy and how to trigger it on purpose. How things like bubbles, googly eyes, fireworks, colours, ice cream cones with sprinkles on top, etc. are simple ways to bring about joy.
It got me thinking about what I can incorporate in my life to give me more to look forward to on a daily basis.
Including some of the things mentioned in the video, here are things that bring me joy and add whimsy to my day:
- Bubbles
- Googly eyes
- Fireworks/drone shows/light shows
- Flowers like Sunflowers and Gerbera Daisies
- Floating on an inflatable mat or tube
- Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis)
- Rainbows
- Sunsets
- Unicorns
- Candles
- Strings of twinkle lights, including LED lights that you can change the colour and make them blink to the beat of a song
- Bold colours
- Stickers
- A disco ball
- Geometric patterns
- Flowy clothes
- Scents (have to be the right ones)
- Textures
- Butterflies
- Baby animals and humans
- Dance/movement
- Music
- Rhythm/percussion
- Discovery
- Wonder
- Awe
- The beauty of nature
- Paths in nature
- Unique clothes and footwear
- Asymmetrical hems
- Things used for purposes they weren’t meant for (i.e. spoons as drawer handles, a tea set lamp, vintage suitcases used for shelves, etc.
Best of all, I found I already had some of these things in my home! I was just so used to them being there, I forgot to enjoy them!
One piece of whimsy I did add recently is that I decorated my big, clunky laptop. I figured that since I was going to be using a dinosaur of a laptop, it needed dinosaur stickers on it, which is what you see in the main photo at the top of this post.
Now, when I sit down to create a blog post, instead of focusing on the fact that my laptop is heavy and awkward, I can smile at all the shiny stickers on it. Makes me look forward to creating content instead of dreading it. And that’s the difference a little whimsy can make.
Life shouldn’t always be about suffering through the crappy stuff. Like Mary Poppins sang, “a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down,” and that’s what it takes to live a life less confined.
