Dear Dayre,
I don't mean to be annoying with all the "ten things" stuff, but since dear @roseannetangrs tagged me on Instagram to list down 10 things that make me happy, I thought that Dayre would be a better platform.. I can type more here without feeling guilty for having too much text if it were Instagram!
So today's entry is gonna be..
10 things that make me happy! ☺️
If you are my real life friend, or you know one of my friends, I think generally people will tell you that I'm a very laid-back and happy person!
I don't really get sad or very angry or emotionally down. I guess part of it has to do with my childhood and the way I grew up. Not to sound like I was a pathetic little thing, but I really did get teased a lot when I was younger. For my 大小眼, for being a 胖妹, and for talking like Daffy Duck 🐧
Of course I did feel upset at times, but most of the time, I just shrugged it off or laughed it off the best I could. Maybe I just always had an overwhelming amount of confidence! I always told myself that it didn't matter what people who didn't love me thought of me, cos they are not the ones that matter to me.
So even until now, if I get negative remarks or comments or haters, I really just find it very amusing and I laugh it off without feeling offended at all 😁
But this post is about what makes me happy!
And happiness is something I value very much. I honestly seriously think that the pursuit of happiness is the most important thing that anyone could do in a lifetime!
Human beings are actually very transient creatures. The earth and the rest of the universe have been around for billions of years, but we only live a short life-span of at best 80-100 years. That practically makes us as minute as a tiny little ant in our huge huge universe.
When you start realizing that you're actually but a very unimportant and tiny speck of dust in the universe, you might then ask yourself, so what is living all about? Is it about the fast cars, the money, the branded bags or some kind of status that makes you more admirable or a cut above the rest?
I guess at the end of the day, what everyone really wants is to feel like more than a speck of dust, be recognized and have our self-worth validated. We want to feel like a success and not a failure.
But if you come to terms with the fact that our time on earth is really extremely short and transient, it makes more sense to focus on what's important. And that's living a happy and fulfilling life day in and day out. I have to admit that I get side-tracked too. Sometimes I let silly things bother me. And the worst is when you start playing the comparison game and you know you're never gonna come out on top cos there's always gonna be someone better.
So at the end of the day… Stop comparing and stop chasing ideals. Stop letting society dictate what you do and do something for yourself.
Do what genuinely MAKES YOU HAPPY! (Within limits of course. If you're an axe murderer and killing innocent people makes you happy, then you obviously have a problem somewhere.)
So yes, happiness is very very important to me and I try to be happy all the time. It's as simple as that.
👆👆👆👆👆
The best way to start with happiness is always to give thanks and remember the little things that make you happy. Here's the ten things that make me happy!
1. Music/singing makes me happy!
Maybe it's ironic that I love to sing sad sad songs, hahaha. But I just feel that the depth of human emotions can only be fully expressed in music and I enjoy immersing myself in the music and being able to touch a chord in the hearts of listeners.
Probably in the bigger picture, it means that being able to connect to souls out there makes me happy as well, cos that's what my blog and social media platforms are about?
2. Travelling and discovering the world makes me happy ✈️🌍
I'm not sure what's the magic in travelling and seeing the world. But it gives me SO much wonder and so much joy to step onto foreign soil and to view the world with eyes like that of a newborn. Every sight is new and every sound is interesting.
Seeing how big and beautiful the world is also makes me realise just how TINY I am. I am indeed just a speck of dust. And that makes me appreciate all that I have even more which makes me happy!
3. Spending time with my loved ones makes me happy 👭👫👬
When you find kindred souls who are able to make you feel so at ease that you don't have to worry about being judged or mocked at or teased or exploited, you can then truly set your guard down and really wholeheartedly love and enjoy each other's company.
Humans can never be lone islands, and I am ever so grateful for the kind of happiness my friends bring to me. Support, encouragement, advice, chiding, I know they really care and they're my solid rocks through the good times and bad. 💋
4. Doing what I love makes me happy!
New arrivals on www.thevelvetdolls.sg!
And right now, doing what I love gives me a huge sense of satisfaction and happiness.
Starting up TVD, working and growing the brand over the years, painstakingly manufacturing and curating in designs, coming out with beautiful products and seeing them on sale on TVD, spotting customers wear TVD clothes makes me SUPER happy and proud.
Every time an item gets sold out and back ordered and every item that gets raves and compliments makes me real happy! 😁
5. My man makes me happy 💑
YZ really changed me a lot. Despite all I said about how I laughed off negative comments and snide remarks as a kid, I did still have a secret fear inside of me: that I'd never be good enough for anyone.
I think this has to do with how I never received any words of affirmation or praise from my parents as a child. Third place in class? Well then, why weren't you first in class instead? 95/100 marks? You should be aiming for full marks, really.
My parents are awesome people, but I've come never to expect any positive reinforcement from them, and that fear of rejection and of never ever being good enough crept into me even as a young adult.
I was really afraid of getting into a relationship because I was fearful of letting my guard down and allowing someone into the innermost crevices of my heart. But he loves me wholeheartedly and makes me believe that I am a person worthy of being loved, and he makes me happy in the simplest ways.
6. Yummy food makes me happy! 🍔🍟🍕🍳🍱
I love to eat so much it isn't even funny. Food makes my tummy really happy and satisfied, especially when I'm sharing a meal with people I love!
Though I don't love the getting fat part, so at the end of the day I have to balance out the two and try to keep things somewhat neutral. I still wanna enjoy my food but I'll be a bit more careful about my portions and try to go easy on the bad food. Overall though, I find it too hard to resist yummy good food. Happiness comes from a content belly!
7. When you leave a comment or send me an email, it makes me happy too! 😁✨
There's a joy in knowing that something I wrote and shared was of value to someone else who read it.. I guess it makes me feel happy that what I share resonates with another person who might have been in need of a different perspective or even felt inspired or motivated by my sharing. That's the incredible power of the WWW and social media. It makes me feel like I'm not alone and knowing that you touched someone else's heart or mind is a very humbling experience.
8. Sometimes, just having an off day or time to do absolutely nothing makes me happy!
Being self-employed means I run around doing stuff 24/7 and having a weekly launch schedule on TVD means I almost perpetually have something to do all the damn time 😩
I don't know how some people can keep their engine on 24/7 and work non-stop, but I love having days when I can just put everything aside and do absolutely nothing!
Usually that entails chilling at home and reading a good book while rolling around in bed. You know what they say, time you enjoy wasting is never time wasted. 👍
9. Seeing my three adorable pooches make me really happy! 🐶
Ok, I just realized that I'm a very repetitive person cos a couple of my "happy" points came up in my "about me" entry too?! But it's all related since it's all about myself 🙈
Seeing my dogs run up to me excitedly whenever I get home makes me feel happy! I have to admit I'm more of a dog person than baby person (why do those two always get put together?) at the moment. Probably since I've yet to experience the greatness of motherhood.
My favourite saying used to be "When the whole world has turned its back on me, I still have my pet dog."
10. Creating beautiful things make me happy! 🎨
Beautiful things make me happy, in general. I love beauty in any form, be it a stunning sunset, a beautiful face, a wonderfully done artwork.
So this also branches out into me loving makeup/beauty, enjoying the creation of and listening to beautiful music that stirs emotions in me, loving photography and taking beautiful photos, even manufacturing pretty designs for TVD. Everything boils down to my love for beauty! 💕
And that's all!
Took me so long to think of ten things that make me happy. HAHAHA. But I'm satisfied with my ten happy things! They're truly some of the most important things that bring me happiness. 😁
So.. What are your ten happy things too? I would love to read them! I shall hashtag this post #10happythings and if any of you would like to share your ten happy things, please do so and hashtag it as well?
And I'm gonna tag my favourite Dayre-ians, cos I wanna know what their ten happy things are!
@evonnz @trishaliang @timothytiah @jazreeltan @shiberty @melissackoh, I choose you!