Well, I do quite like raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, but I was thinking more of that first cup of coffee of the day, my husband’s kiss as he goes off to work and the feel of freshly laundered sheets.

These are small pleasures, but without them, where would we be?

One of the problems with dieting is that one’s favourite chocolate bars are out of bounds – that’s one pleasure gone. Because I don’t drink alcohol, the pleasure of enjoying a glass of wine with friends is no longer an option. I feel those losses acutely. In fact, so acutely, the chocolate hasn’t quite gone, although the alcohol most certainly has.

I was trying to make a longer list of pleasurable things, and this is what I came up with:

· Soft warm towels straight out of the tumble drier.

· Reading a favourite book.

· Reading a new book.

· My card making sessions with friends on a Tuesday morning.

· Seeing a shelf at work which I have dressed beautifully. (Dressing the shelves means making them look neat and tidy and as full as possible. It’s quite an art.)

· Writing this blog every week.

· Putting on my scent each day – it smells so lovely.

· Seeing a row of shirts that I have ironed.

· Walking with my friend and her dog.

· That feeling of relief, satisfaction and smugness of getting my tax return in early.

I realised that quite a lot of these are pleasures at the end of a task which is not itself enjoyable. I do like dressing the shelves at work, although it is always a race against time, but I don’t enjoy the ironing itself and the process of doing the tax return is gruelling. I keep putting it off, but I do normally get it done by the end of July and then I feel quietly superior in January when my husband finally, with some panic, gets around to doing his. 

I suppose the art is feeling enough pleasure in the end result to make the process itself worthwhile. I don’t imagine anyone at all really enjoys housework, but the pleasure of a clean and tidy house at the end makes it bearable. I would like to do a deep clean of my mother’s apartment, but it is so cluttered and untidy that the task is too daunting. At the end of the dusting and wiping down, I’m not at all sure we would see any improvement, as the clutter would still be there. But her things give her joy, which brings me back to those small pleasures.

I think the trick is to notice these small pleasures and really appreciate them. Wriggle down in those clean sheets and enjoy them. Sip that first cup of coffee in the morning and relish every mouthful. Bury your face in that warm fluffy towel; dwell on the result of doing a job you don’t like.

What small pleasures are yours? And which results make an unpleasant task worthwhile?

Mary

A Moodscope member