It’s easy to take things for granted especially when our everyday routine eventually becomes the same — waking up with the sunrise which signals a new day, having accessibility to the internet for us to receive updates on happenings around the world, having the ability to hear the calls of the morning koels sing in a choir, having clean water to wash our faces, and the list never ends.
We’re often in a hurry as if today is our last. As we pursue the “glory” of what we call, “Productivity & Efficiency”, we tend to neglect the small moments of our everyday lives. Well for me at least, I tend to occupy my time with a book while on the commute and strive to accomplish an embroidery project at the end of every week. But, are these really that important? Reading a book on commute also means that I’ll miss what’s on my journey to work, like the clouds in the sky and the other commuters I share the same bus with.
I started to take notice of practicing mindfulness after a series of “what ifs” and “what’s next” running in my head, which was when my mind paused and reminded me to cherish the present. Because, our current present will eventually become our past.
In my efforts to start journaling the things that I’m grateful for, I would like to express my gratitude for the technological conveniences that we have in our present lives.
Being stuck in quarantine now during this Chinese New Year (CNY) season honestly made me feel a little isolated on the inside. At each stroll I made on my social media feed, all I saw were friends and acquaintances in their CNY outfits and reunion dinner Instagram stories. As if being physically isolated at home wasn’t enough, feeling isolated in the virtual space was an added layer of loneliness.
#1: Grateful for having the virtual space to connect with friends
With that said, I’ve also learned to look on the brighter side of things during this period. Having this virtual space was the only way that I could connect with my other friends, and update each other on our daily happenings. I would have become a troglodyte if not for this easy accessibility to the world outside my home. It also helps to know that I’m not the only person having to deal with this COVID quarantine.
Physically, I spent most of my time with my other COVID-positive siblings binge-watching Netflix series and ordered in (because we can’t go out anyway).
#2: Grateful for having the ability to opt for online deliveries
“What’s for dinner ah?”
“Aiya, grab lor what else?”
Although it does sound like we were cornered to opt for online food delivery, I’m super thankful that technology today has made it so convenient to bring food to our doorstep. Of course, that requires a level of monetary privilege that not many has, which I am also equally grateful for.
#3: Grateful for online entertainment available to keep me entertained
And of course, the internet. Now that I’ve gotten myself some time to rest and have a short break from work, I could now binge on shows that I haven’t been able to watch. It amazes me that with the internet, we can start screening films from other countries like Korea, America, and Taiwan. In a way, the internet also created a space for us to connect around the world. Likewise, social media platforms such as Tiktok also started to show trending videos from all around the world.
My gratitude journal used to have the same logs each day — 1. Having a shelter. 2. Waking up visually abled. 3. Adequate access to food… But now, I will commit to including some of these observations and reflections as well as the rationale on the things that I’m grateful for each day.
It’s really the small moments that count and made me feel like I’m living, again.
