As I walked down the path to my flat the other day, I crunched through piles of curled-up dry leaves. They made a very satisfying noise! It was then that I realised that Summer was definitely over and that Autumn was here.

Usually I feel a little sad at the end of the Summer, but I truly believe we’ve had a ‘proper’ Summer this year. Too many times in the past it seemed like the second season flew by with only a few sunny days scattered about in-between mostly wet and miserable days. But this year has been different. Having recently left the teaching profession and returned to 20 days plus bank holidays for annual leave, I have had to plan my days off carefully. And yet I have so many memories of beautiful sunny days; good times spent with family and friends, as well as moments on my own.

So, it is with not too much sadness that I kiss Summer goodbye, and welcome Autumn with open arms. It’s a good time to consider what I am looking forward to in this coming season.

1. Leaves.
I may have mentioned it already, but it’s so good that it deserves a proper description. There is nothing quite like kicking through Autumn leaves. Whether they are crunchy ones scattered on the floor, or big piles of soggy rotting ones, I love reverting to being a kid again and charging through leaves, (although the adult part of me will make sure that I have suitable footwear on!).

2. Food.
A list written by me wouldn’t be complete without some mention or other of food. There are certain foods that just taste better in the chiller seasons. Baked potatoes, casseroles, soups and hot chocolate immediately spring to mind. There is nothing quite like a big bowl or mug of warming soup. I have memories of clasping polystyrene containers full of steaming curried parsnip soup on Bonfire Night. Delicious!

3.  Bonfire Night.
That was an easy link! I love this festival. What is not to love about a roaring fire, fireworks and probably a BBQ or hog roast? Admittedly I have mixed feelings about the history and origin of Guy Fawkes night and also about how the day progressed into what it is today, but I love the festival that it has turned into. Here is another example of how I become child-like, as I gain such pleasure from watching the bonfire being lit and the fireworks bursting into the sky. And of course everyone loves sparklers – no Bonfire Night would be complete without them.

4. Woolly jumpers.
Yep, that’s right – it’s time to pack away your Summer wardrobe and bring out those warm comfy clothes. Although I have to admit that my wardrobe doesn’t change much during the year – in Summer my dresses are paired with thin black or nude tights with shoes, and in Autumn the very same dresses are worn but this time with thick black tights or leggings, boots, cardigans, hoodies and knitted jumpers. I am very much a ‘dress-wearer’ these days so they just get paired up with different things! Oh and I guess it’s time that umbrellas and waterproof jackets stayed within easy reach.

5. Conkers!
In the days of childhood, conkers would be carefully selected before asking a parent to drill a hole in them, baking them in the oven for a while, before threading an old shoelace (usually Dad’s!) through the hole. Much fun was had playing games with the conkers and trying to destroy someone else’s! These days, it doesn’t seem to be part of childhood in the same way, maybe due to ‘elf and safety’ or the rise of electronic games. Who knows. But it’ll always be a great memory for me. These days I still collect conkers but for a different reason. Apparently placing them in the corners of your rooms keeps the spiders away. It’s probably a load of nonsense but I’ll try anything!

There are many lovely things about Autumn and these are just a few. I would write more but I have woolly jumpers to find, boots to pull on and hot chocolate to make.

What do you love about Autumn?

I am an awful friend. It’s true! I forgot a good friend’s birthday a few days ago (I could have sworn it was next week) and doing such things is not uncommon for me. I forget birthdays and other important dates, I don’t always reply straight away to texts, I can go for weeks without contacting someone. I have a memory like a sieve and a poor attention span. And yet in spite of all of this, I still have a group of people who I would call ‘very good friends’.  This says a lot more about their loveliness and ability to forgive than it does about me!

I feel so blessed to have so many people in my life who are loving and caring, and I know that I need to make much more of an effort to make them realise how much they mean to me.  Maybe this will be my resolution for September (and beyond!).  I need to start being less selfish and preoccupied with my own life, and think more about others. I don’t purposefully neglect other people, I’m just rather accidentally thoughtless at times.

So, here will be the start of me hopefully thinking more about those amazing people I am lucky to have in my life, and focusing more on their needs.

Thank you to all of my amazing friends out there; you mean so much to me.

I read an article online today about how to lead an exceptional life even when life isn’t exceptional.
It was supposed to be an inspirational piece to encourage us to think about our dreams.  It suggested aiming for such dreams one step at a time, without trying to do it all at once and feeling overwhelmed by the enormity of the task.

I completely agreed with the sentiment, and indeed the idea of this made me feel positive about life in general.

The article went on to describe some amazing people and the fantastic things that they have achieved.  Forgive me if this sounds selfish but at this point, after reading about their amazing successes, I actually began to feel really rubbish about myself! There were stories of people who had managed to accomplish astonishing feats, and who had succeeded when all the odds were against them.

Don’t get me wrong; I was overwhelmed by their courage, determination and achievements, but it made my life feel somewhat pathetic in comparison. Not only have I not completed such incredible tasks such as circumnavigating the globe in a sailboat, being the youngest person to have been elected as an MP, or flown in space,  but I have no desire to do such things either.

I do accept that the aim of the article wasn’t to say that we should all go out and aim for such things. It was saying that we shouldn’t be afraid to dream big by focusing on the small things.

Maybe it’s just the mood I’m in today, but at the moment I feel like I don’t want to dream big. Is that so wrong?

Of course there are things in my life and about myself that I’m not entirely happy with and would like to change, but generally I’m quite content. I have my ups and downs like anyone else, but at the end of the day I feel satisfied with where I am in life. Yes I’d like to progress in my career, yes I’d like more money etc. But if such things don’t happen then I don’t think I’d feel a sense of great loss.
Even though I feel at times like I don’t deserve them, I am so lucky to have a wonderful family and loyal friends. My family love, support and care for me, and my friends are always there for me. To me, being surrounded by an incredible network of family and friends is the greatest achievement I could ask for.

I’m not sure who to attribute the following saying to, but I love the passage that states ‘I’ve learned that family and friends are what make us who we are today, and without them we would never be complete’.

It’s a good job that this is a blog post not a formal article, as my initial aim when I started to write – whatever that might have been – seems to have disappeared completely and taken me along a very different thought process!

But as I started typing I was feeling frustrated at my lack of achievements and how pathetic my life must appear to be, but as I conclude I have that warm fuzzy feeling inside and I feel safe in the knowledge that as long as I love and I am loved, then my life is complete.

Today the dress I was wearing had pockets in it. This made me happy. Don’t ask me why because I didn’t use them for anything expect for placing my hands in them for a couple of moments during the day. But for some reason, just the knowledge that my dress had pockets gave me a feeling of satisfaction.

This made me wonder what other simple things made me happy. Now of course the usual things like sunshine, a smile, a hug from a loved one etc came to mind, but I tried to think a little further than that. These are the things that I have come up with so far…

1. Getting home in the evening and realising that I was grown-up enough to have made my bed that morning. I find that a tidy bed is so much more pleasing on the eye than an un-made one.

2. A friendly and helpful shop assistant. I’m not saying that shop assistants aren’t usually friendly and helpful, but occasionally I have a conversation in a shop which really makes me smile. I was in Boots earlier and the assistant seemed so genuinely caring and interested in me (not in a creepy way!) that I left the shop with a smile on my face and a fuzzy feeling inside.

3. Flowers. I love receiving flowers. One of my close friends hates bunches of flowers as she believes that their beauty should be preserved by leaving them in the ground instead of cutting them and making them die. I do understand this point of view but it doesn’t change the fact that I get a huge thrill of joy when someone gives me some flowers.

4. Peeling a satsuma in one go. It’s quite embarrassing how much satisfaction I get out of removing the peel of a satsuma in one piece. Did you ever do that thing as a child where you would then throw the peel over your left shoulder and it was supposed to land in the shape of the initial of your true love? I hope it wasn’t just me! It was all a load of rubbish of course but it was great fun.

5. Summer evenings. There is nothing quite like leaving work when it is still light, safe in the knowledge that it will remain light for a good number of hours. The possibilities of what can be done in that time seem so exciting; go for a walk, have a dinner picnic in the park, sit outside in the garden etc. There always seems to be so much more time to do things than during dark, Winter evenings.

6. Some people will disagree with me on this one but it’s MY list so I don’t care! I love waking up thinking that’s it’s morning, before realising that in fact it’s still the middle of the night and that I can turn over and go back to sleep for many more hours. I love sleep. I really do. I’d sleep / stay in bed for 12 hours a night if I could. Apparently, as a baby all I seemed to do was sleep and eat. Some things never change.

7. Who doesn’t love receiving post which isn’t a bill? I have been known to give a little squeal of delight when picking up the post from the floor by the door, to realise that there is a handwritten letter or card in the pile. I have recently moved home so I have received a few cards in the post. Opening them and reading them was a guaranteed way to have a smile plastered on my face.

8. We’ve all heard the phrase ‘dance like nobody is watching’ and this is just what I like to do. Apart from the fact that I make sure that nobody actually is watching! I have been known to prance about the office when it’s empty, do a little jig when I’m alone in a lift, and gallop around my flat with great enthusiasm. It is guaranteed to make me giggle like a chipmunk. Go on… have a dance.

9. I cannot count the number of times that I have missed a bus by less than a minute because I couldn’t get across a busy road in time. I love the feeling when a bus arrives shortly after I get to the bus stop. If I am on my way into work then this really gives the day a positive start.

10. Parcels. I know this one is similar to number 7 in this post about erm… post, but it’s slightly different. Nowadays I do a lot of my shopping online. Many people do this because it’s convenient but one of the main reasons that I do it is because I love opening parcels! Even though I know what’s in them because I ordered them (and paid for them), to me it feels a little bit like Christmas or a birthday when I rip through the packaging.

I miscounted my previous posts and thought I had one left. So this is a bonus one that I couldn’t possibly leave out…
11. Finding chocolate in the fridge (or anywhere for that matter) when I thought I had finished it all. This one needs no further explanation!

It is often the simple things in life that make us happy. It is so easy to get wrapped up in the day-to-day trappings of modern life and all the stress that it brings with it. I know that when I take time to sit back and appreciate those little things, that I feel so much happier.