I am Thankful For: The Small Things

“Those born to wealth, and who have the means of gratifying every wish, know not what is the real happiness of life, just as those who have been tossed on the stormy waters of the ocean on a few frail planks can alone realize the blessings of fair weather.”
― Alexandre Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo

In this blog series I am taking a look at my blessings, my ‘blessings of fair weather’. This week I choose to take a look at the small things that perhaps I forget to be thankful for. Some of my favourite moments from 2012 have been really simple ones; moments of sharing with friends, moments sipping tea and feeling the heat of mug in my hands, moments with my husband playing cards in various airports and moments just being still…. The small instants that make up this life sometimes pass us by but for others these seemingly trivial seconds would be held as the most immense blessing. So this week I bring some photos that celebrate the trivial, the insignificant, the trifling…. The exceptional!

A wonderful tree loved by a wonderful woman in South Africa. This is Jill’s tree, it is a large Blue Gum. It is nothing special – except that it is! It is loved and it stands proud and tall overlooking a vineyard. Trees are great.

The school run. Happens everywhere – including remote Nepalese villages. This little girl fidgeted and grumbled as her mum tried to get her ready for school. I sipped tea and smiled!

Tea and coffee. Pretty much my favourite ‘simple blessings’ anywhere in the world. Tea and coffee unite us as human beings, they give warmth on cold day and they refresh on a hot day! Ethiopia is known for its coffee, and its tea is pretty good too!

Getting to know new people and making friends. I like this photo because it sums up two simple joys from this year; getting to know colleagues like Richard better so that I now consider them friends, and getting to meet amazing people like these cheeky boys all over the world (this is another image from Ethiopia)

The scenery in South Africa. Just stunning. Standing still on a cold day holding hands with my husband looking at Boulders Bay in Simon’s Town before the rain set in is a simple but beautiful memory.

Photo by my husband Stephen Cook, I normally hate photos of me but I like this one because it shows me enjoying one of my favourite simple moments – chilling out on the beach! (Chintsa, S.Africa)