“There are two ways to live: you can live as if nothing is a miracle, or you can live as if everything is a miracle.” –Albert Einstein
The other day I started writing in a gratitude journal again, right as I was overcoming a cold. After I wrote my boyfriend’s name, my family, and Tiny Buddha, I wrote “breathing through both nostrils.”
A few days prior, when my right side was all stuffed up, I wasn’t doing that so well.
It occurred to me then that when I’d kept a gratitude journal before, I never once expressed by appreciation for the ability to breathe through both sides of my nose—and yet I’ve done that on the vast majority of my days.
In fact, I’ve likely been able to breathe through both nostrils on over 11,500 days, if you assume I’ve been stuffed up for no more than 10 days during each year of my life.
It never occurred to me appreciate this because I took it for granted.
Yet in that moment when I wrote it down, I truly felt a sense of relief and joy about the simple act of breathing properly.
I wondered then: How many other outlets for gratitude and joy do I ignore on a daily basis? I asked myself:
How often do you stop to recognize how comfortable your desk chair is? When’s the last time you stared out the sliding glass doors and appreciated that you live in a well-lit space? How regularly do you log onto the Internet and marvel at the wonders of modern technology?
We live our lives surrounded by tiny wonders. In any given moment, there is a multitude of sounds, sights, and sensations to experience and savor.
It’s easy to forget these things are gifts, especially when we’re caught up in our heads, dwelling on what went wrong, worrying about what might go wrong, or finding things wrong with ourselves and our circumstances instead of really being present.
When we’re able to seep into the moment, suddenly we remember how fortunate we are to be here, breathing, sharing this great big beautiful world.
We’re inevitably going to have dark days, when life feels more like a tragedy than a miracle. But we can trust that when we’re ready to appreciate the light, we’ll find it. It’s always there. It’s everywhere.
Photo by Wonderlane
About Lori Deschene
Lori Deschene is the founder of Tiny Buddha. She started the site after struggling with depression, bulimia, c-PTSD, and toxic shame so she could recycle her former pain into something useful and inspire others to do the same. You can find her books, including Tiny Buddha’s Gratitude Journal and Tiny Buddha’s Worry Journal, here and learn more about her eCourse, Recreate Your Life Story, if you’re ready to transform your life and become the person you want to be.
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Though I run this site, it is not mine. It's ours. It's not about me. It's about us. Your stories and your wisdom are just as meaningful as mine. 
Beautiful said and always true.
Happiness lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things. For me, I love just standing on my roof and looking at the sky. When we learn how to derive pleasure from virtually anything, life becomes a kind of ecstasy.
Last night as I was getting into bed, I said to my little dog, “No matter how bad life seems, as long as you have a comfy bed to sleep in at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.” 🙂
Lori, a big congrats on the USA Today review of your book — this is so exciting! You must feel like you’ve made it in the world. Enjoy!
I have been making a gratitude list every day off and on for the last four months. I am most often grateful for the same things every day. You have inspired me to think of more things I take for granted. Breathing is certainly one of the things I am grateful for. It seems silly but it feels good to recognize the littlest things most of all.
I love this message of being grateful. My post on my blog today is about gratitude journals. Keeping a journal has helped me appreciate “little things” too, like being able to see, having all my teeth, having a roof over my head, etc. We have so many blessings in our lives. We just have to notice them.
I love “We live our lives surrounded by tiny wonders.” Too often we assign what’s truly significant with the label, “insignificant.”
I love how you wrote that! I too love just staring at the sky. When I was younger, I often laid in the grass and stared up at the clouds (trying to identify shapes), but I don’t do that as often these days. You’ve reminded me to spend a little time on the ground in my backyard.
Thanks so much Julie! It’s my first mainstream review, and I am just so thrilled about it!
So true! It’s like that quote, “Enjoy the little things, for one day you may look back and realize they were the big things.”
Yes absolutely! I’ve also thought about the teeth one recently. I have a lot of dreams where I’m losing my teeth (odd, I know). I think about that sometimes when I’m eating. Thank goodness they’re there and they work!
Yes definitely! I noticed that when I kept a gratitude journal last time–a lot of repetition. It’s kind of fun to look for the little things that are different from day to day.
Yes, it’s such a great feeling to lay in bed at the end of the night, take a deep breath, and realize everything is okay. I’m hoping to have a dog of my own to curl up with some time soon. I’m not allowed to have one in my current apartment, but my boyfriend finally agreed to us getting a dog when we’re able to switch into a dog-friendly unit. I can’t wait! =)
Thank you so much =)
The little things in life really are the best. Every night for the past couple of years, I’ve written down three things that I’ve been thankful for each day. Often they’re the most simple things, which would often have gone unnoticed in the past.
What a wonder reminder to stay thankful!!!