Indulge Daily.

BY SARAH CURL

Sarah Curl is a life-long bibliophile, snail mail enthusiast, and hoarder of journals. She lives in the Midwest with her husband and daughter, where they enjoy splashing in the river and hunting for interesting rocks.

In a drawer in my house, I have a collection of stickers divided into Ziplocs and labeled by category—holiday, animals, letters, and so on. On one of those bags, my fourth-grade self neatly wrote “too good to use” on the collection of my most prized stickers—Rugrats, Garfield, and some surfing cows. Decades later, I look at the stickers fondly with nostalgia, but also with some regret that they never lived out their full sticker potential and all this time later have lost their stickiness. It’s only recently, after becoming a mom and spending some time fumbling around on this earth of ours, that I am learning to use the precious things daily, to incorporate the best things into small moments, and to not save them up for a time that might not come.

Why indulge daily?

·       Everything is fleeting. I used to be your typical save-the-best-bite-for-last kind of gal, the type of person who has everyday pens and good pens. You probably know someone like me, or maybe you are someone like me. I am learning, lately, though, that more times than not, your preschooler will eat the best bite right off your plate if you’re not fast enough, and your special pen might fall down the unretrievable crevice in the car between the seat and the console. Time will pass, and those jeans that fit just perfectly that you only wore sparingly, might no longer fit, or you may just no longer love them as much as you once did. A million things could happen that could change everything—you might lose a job, gain a job, get a diagnosis, become a parent, answer a phone call—you might grow up.

·       Moments become richer. Living with a three-year old is a lesson in being present. Driving by the park last week, my daughter squeals from her car seat, “Let’s go down that big red slide!” Knowing the errands in front of us for the morning, I say, “Yes, we should come back and do that sometime.” She’s quiet for a beat before responding, “But now is some time.” I am often left breathless by the bits of truth this wise little human shares so casually. I park the car, and we race to the slide, laughing to be living in “some time.” That night, as I try to slow my spinning brain, my thoughts settle around the red slide and the spot of color that it was in my day. I promise myself I will be more intentional about noticing and seizing these bright fragments hiding in ordinary moments.

How do you indulge daily?

·       Create rituals. Taco Tuesdays, Friday pizza nights—there are reasons our culture embraces any opportunity to find fun in routine. For me, if something is on the schedule, it’s something to look forward to, not to mention something that doesn’t require me to spend decision-making energy. Build abundance into your calendar. Every time you get an oil change, schedule a weekend adventure. Make grocery day dark chocolate day! Go to the movies every Friday the 13th. We schedule dentist visits and doctor appointments, pay bills by their due dates, and meet deadlines at work. It is just as critical that we incorporate joy into our routines—go ahead, set a reminder for yourself!

·       Celebrate everything. Did you finally get everything dropped off at the recycling center? Did your kid go to bed without getting up seven different times for a drink? Did you hit only green lights on your drive home? Celebrate! Celebrations don’t have to be big, but carve room in your day to sit in some gratitude. Go for an extra long walk with the dog, leave the dishes for tomorrow, or bring home fresh flowers. There will be seasons in your life when the seemingly small celebrations will bring you out of the darkness, just as there will be seasons of pure light. I am learning, however slowly, that when you find something that delights you, indulge in it. 

For me, it is easier to think in terms of small indulgences, where the stakes are low, but when I’m honest with myself, indulging daily is much grander than office supplies and pizza nights. It’s about being present and grateful and joyful in the moments when you can be, because sometimes you can’t. It’s about living in abundance, even if that abundance is something as simple as having a slice of hot blackberry pie for dinner. It’s about unknowingly walking into work with princess stickers on the back of your shirt because your daughter knows that the best things are for now. It’s about taking a breath, looking around you, and thinking of how incredible it is to even be here on this planet.