Everything that Made me Happy in July

• Graceland Too by Phoebe Bridgers
• Seeing people I love after a long while apart
• Black-eyed susans
• Identifying trees
• The IT Crowd
• British humour
• Picking wildflowers
• Paved trails
• Evening church sermons
• Chocolate fudge ice cream
• “We could take your wheelchair”
• Secondhand bookstores
• Finding the perfect book for another
• Three-dollar books
• An email that says “your order has shipped”
• Finding old scraps of paper with handwritten words, once used as a bookmark by a stranger
• Updating my Goodreads account
• Fresh, unused leather notebooks
• Replacing bad habits with good ones
• New stickers
• Samples of washi tape
• Codes and ciphers
• Writing on a quiet evening
• Fantasy children’s books
• Tiny sprinkles of rain during quiet hours
• Someone bringing me my favourite food, because they know I’ll love it
• The sounds of birds singing above my head
• A gift of homemade cookies
• The simple words, “I’m sorry,” paired up with a hug
• “Thank you for sharing your story with us”
• Meeting new, kind people
• Vaccines
• Showing others my bullet journal
• Pressed leaves
• Hearing another talk about a book they love
• Discussing novels
• Bright gardens with flowers emerging through the greenery
• Poems that transport me to the depths of nature
• Sunflowers printed on a tablecloth
• Duolingo challenges
• Chinese dramas
• The green glow of sunlight through leaves
• Freshly-brushed hair
• Enola Holmes
• Friends falling in love with my favourite books
• A satisfying ending to a story
• The poetic, intricate writing of Donna Tartt
• Crépes
• Chocolate-covered pretzels
• The word, saudade
• Enneagram twos
• Motherly love
• Fishtail braids
• Cinnamon bun tea
• The sound of crickets on an early morning
• The number “24”
• Cryptography
• Instrumental hymns
• Remembering God’s promises and love
• The feeling of being beautifully woven into the fabric of eternity
• Lavender blooming on the side of the road
• Kind strangers opening the door
• Seaside wind
• Funny, improvised lyrics
• An isolated house built onto a tiny island of rocks
• Sailboats
• Old lighthouses
• A distant daydream of living in a lighthouse someday
• Abandoned mansions
• Hot chocolate with a shot of espresso
• Strong waves crashing on rocks
• Large rocks peaking above the Atlantic waters
• Houses that look like they belong in The Great Gatsby
• The smell of being close to the water
• The connection of family
• Signs with bronze lettering

Keep wandering,