Monday, January 07, 2013

Three Good Things

Lamy Safaris
Brought to you in part by three good fountain pens...

Continuing my striving toward more positive thinking: this is a concept that I believe exists elsewhere (I think someone even mentioned it in response to a recent post of mine), but I first came to think about it via an on-going thread in the Chatter section of Fountain Pen Network which has long piqued my interest and admiration. The thread is called, quite simply, "Three Good Things From Your Day," and it invites just that: that you stop by and list three good things from your day, each day. The variance in responses is interesting: some people and some days may include Big Important Good Things like births and weddings and graduations and promotions--life dreams fulfilled. Other days, the good things mostly amount to, "Well, I made it through." Sometimes it can be a real struggle to excavate any tiny gems glittering in the muck and mire of a bad day, but I think the very exercise of seeking these reclusive gems helps us to see the positive in life, and just how blessed we really are.

I think I'm going to incorporate this idea into my journals: finish off each day's entry with a list of three good things from the day. I imagine I'll have my fair share of "made it through" items: today, for example, I could write that I remembered my coffee at the last second instead of leaving it on the counter at home. But it will also push me to notice and appreciate all the good little moments in my days. I'm looking forward to this. Maybe that in itself counts as one of my three good things for the day!

For today, on top of my remembering my coffee, I could also include:
- Received an e-mail from my grandmother
- My brother offered to send me the Goat Rodeo Sessions DVD (I'm a big fan of this project, and have the music album, but not the concert DVD!) Very cool.

What are three good things from your day?

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

1) Read this post.
2) received a new typewriter.
3) Woke in a good mood.
Gerald
http://typeoh.net

notagain said...

1. The typosphere's waking up.
2. Typed on the SM-3.
3. Discovered Professor Elemental (check my blog for that one)

Anonymous said...

Interesting. Yours is the second or third blog since the new year discussing taking a more optimistic view of life. Quite the convergence.

Here are my three:
1. Got seven hours of sleep, which is rare.
2. Two of my favorite magazines arrived today.
3. Solved a plot problem for a short story I'm writing.

I like the photo. Three Safari fountain pens is a good thing any day.

Jeff The Bear

Elizabeth H. said...

Good lists! Thanks for sharing them! And aw, Gerald, it's sweet of you to make this one of your items!

Since I'm here, I guess I could list three more items for today. It was definitely more of a "made it through" kind of a day...but after some thinking, I had at least three good things.

1. Got to spend some time writing with a sample of Sailor Sky High ink in my aqua Lamy Safari. It's a beautiful color: bright, cheerful, vibrant sky blue, with a bit of a red shimmer where the ink pools, and very smooth to write with. Not sure I'll spring for a full bottle even after my purchase moratorium, since it's a bit pricier than many US inks, but I'm enjoying this little taste.

2. Made it to the gym to suffer on the elliptical machine for the third time in a week, making at least *one* New Year's Resolution I haven't already broken...

3. Am about to have a cup of my favorite peppermint chamomile tea with a bit of honey, and a quiet read before bed.

Arleigh said...

I've been doing this for more than a year. It really does help you to appreciate the good things in life, plus also it puts you in a good mood to pick out all the positives in your day.