I was so excited when I noticed an email light up my phone this morning! Our first entrant! I wished I could have rushed home to put this post together. Thank you to Emily for being the first to share her 5 beautiful things.
Giving Light – Emily A
Small Bio: I’m Emily. Momma by occupation. INFJ. Lover of nap time, justice, being outside, efficiency and learning.
1.My exuberant and exhausting six month old son’s sweet, gummy grin.
2. Mountains
Last night I had a dream that Hazel Green, Alabama was only a 15 minute drive to the snow covered glory of Alaskan mountain ranges. I was so frustrated I’d lived here a year before figuring this out. If only.
3. Long distance friendships.
We are different people than we were 12 years ago in our freshman year of high school, but despite all the changes and the separation of miles and months, our loyalty and commitment have grown. Long live the group text.
4. Me
I AM BEAUTIFUL. Without exception or apology. Even if it feels like a lie or an arrogant thing to say, I will keep reminding myself anyway. Because as a woman, there is hardly anything more radical and revolutionary than self-love in the face of a consumer culture that wants to convince us we’re not and sell us the solution. I AM BEAUTIFUL. You are, too.
5.The small gifts in the daily grind.
Since reading Ann Voskamp’s One Thousand Gifts, I have tried to make a discipline of noticing the holy handouts in the mundane. They are many.
I love this quote by Andy Rooney about such gifts.
“For most of life, nothing wonderful happens. If you don’t enjoy getting up and working and finishing your work and sitting down to a meal with family or friends, then the chances are that you’re not going to be very happy. If someone bases his happiness or unhappiness on major events like a great new job, huge amounts of money, a flawlessly happy marriage or a trip to Paris, that person isn’t going to be happy much of the time. If, on the other hand, happiness depends on a good breakfast, flowers in the yard, a drink or a nap, then we are more likely to live with quite a bit of happiness.”
52 Beautiful Things 