A Few of My Favourite Things

I love my life. I’ll admit, it’s not often easy. Some days are worse than others. Some days are better than others. And while not easy, it’s always worthwhile and meaningful.

Those days that are a little tougher than others, I try to figure out ways to lift me up. I have two sure fire ways that help. They help a lot. Lately, it seems like I’ve needed it.

I’ve kept a box of memories ever since I was in junior high. That box has gotten nicer over the years, but it’s still a simple box. Much like Indiana Jones who knew that the Holy Grail was a simple chalice, that of a carpenter, my box is simple. In it, I kept safe all sorts of things. Birthday cards. Christmas cards. Old baseball cards. Wedding invites. Family & friends’ babies’ births. Little notes passed in classes from junior high and high school. Letters from my folks, from family, from friends. Love notes. Notes from my folks, my brothers and my sister. Concert ticket stubs. Baseball tickets. Football tickets. Basketball tickets. Hockey tickets. Old IDs – passports, school cards, etc. On days when I may be blue, my memories always pick me up.

I also think about all of my favourite things. I attended a workshop recently where the moderator asked us to write down a few of our favourite things. Since it was an exercise I do quite frequently, I happily obliged. Off the top of my head, “these are a few of my favorite things…”

Each day, telling at least one person I love that I love them, in person, over the phone, via text or email. Paying love forward brings the biggest smile to my face and biggest spring to my step.
Spending time with my niece Beatrix’ – her laugh, how everything is new to her, the way she says Uncle Cecil, the way she says “Dodger Blue”
Being with my dog Taylor. He is everything to me. And before him, my dog Jack that passed away. And the other dogs in my family’s lives that have since passed – Taylor’s brother Lawrence (who passed away a few days ago), Foster, Kalib, Mason, and Tina.
Spending time with my family and my friends. And while this may be a generic catch-all, it truly is my favourite thing. I get energized and re-energized every single time I am with the people I love. They are without a doubt the most amazing people I know and continuously challenge me to be better than I could ever be, an ideal I strive for each and every day.
The holiday season, from Thanksgiving to New Years, with family and friends. I especially love that time in Chicago, and also find New York magical.
All sports, but especially attending baseball games, especially at Fenway Park and Wrigley Field, but also Dodger Stadium, Camden Yards, Yankee Stadium, AT&T Park, Busch Stadium, Kaufman Stadium, Comerica Park, Jacobs Field, and Comiskey Park.
As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more of a fan of the game (and tend to support many of my family and my friends’ teams), but I still have a lot of love and passion for my childhood teams – the San Francisco 49ers in the NFL, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox in MLB, the Notre Dame Fighting IRISH in NCAA College Football, and the Purdue Boilermakers in NCAA College Basketball (where I attended school). I have to admit and include the Chicago Cubs after living in Chicago for twenty years. When they win the World Series, I will cry.
Traveling the country and traveling the world. I’ve been to many places. I’ve seen many things. I have not even scratched the surface of all the places I want to visit and things I want to see and life I want to experience.
Road trips, especially of late driving along the Pacific Coast Highway.
Sunrises and sunsets in Sausalito
Driving (and walking) across the Golden Gate Bridge. Living outside San Francisco, the dream I’ve always wanted to dream.
The Chicago skyline. Living twenty years in the city that will always live in my heart.
India, the land of my birth. Having been there in 1982, 1988, 1991, 1997, 2006 and this year and every time I am there, I want to go back. This year, I went with my best friend. And looking at the land of my birth through his eyes was/is a gift I will never be able to repay.
Listening to music; I have it playing (almost literally) 24/7. And going to concerts.
Weddings – my family and my friends, and someday my own.
“I love to love.” That’s my favourite.
“Smiling’s my favourite.”