Day 1 - List 10 things that make you really happy
Thing Number One
Listening to music will always raise my spirits, without fail. Even if I don't like the genre that I'm listening to, say it's playing on the radio and I have no control, it'll still make me happy. It's just something I've always loved, and will continue to love.
Thing Number Two
Writing short stories, or working on a current book makes me really happy. I tend to connect with my characters easier than real people, which sounds and is stupid, but I do. Writing about the people I've created gives me a sense of joy.
Thing Number Three
Reading is something that is close to making me happier than anything else. It's a horrible coping mechanism, but I love reading because I enter this other world and I go through the characters life, and face their problems instead of my own. In a way, it's the idea escaping reality that draws me into reading.
Thing Number Four
Creating characters is a lot of fun. Not just character design, but character backstory, and just giving characters their own personal, their own life, their own world. I do this a lot. For instance, my art style is extremely cartoony, and every character of mine has a different shaped pupil. Typically, the shape of their pupil will resemble them and their personality. My friend and I were talking about the kind of world they'd live in, how they'd all be from the same universe. The pupils- what if they needed contact lenses? They would have to get them particularly tailored to their pupil shape. Doing things like this make me really, really happy.
Thing Number Five
Talking to my inner circle of friends, hanging out with them, helping them through their issues. Which is, yet again, a horrible coping mechanism. I help others face their problems, instead of facing my own. But, the gratitude and satisfaction of helping my chosen family through their problems makes me really happy. They always raise my spirits; hanging out with them, talking on our group chat, doing group calls, and we live playing CAH and paranoia. It's those kinds of traditions that make me happy.
Thing Number Six
Hanging out with my siblings (when we actually get along) makes me happy. Playing games with them is so much fun. We play Clue and Uno a lot, and love to play video games together. It's rare, but when we have our moments, I really cherish those times.
Thing Number Seven
The traditional game of Phase 10. Okay so this might take some explaining. For as long as I can remember, my family on my mom's side has played Phase 10 anytime we're all together. Which is probably rarer than you'd expect, since we're all all over the U.S., but when we do, it's so much fun. I've been included in this tradition since I was 7 years old, and it's one of the only things I look forward to during family reunions. A running joke is that every time we play, someone is always or ends up holding a baby.
Thing Number Eight
Photography is something else that I cherish and hold close. I love being able to capture something physically and hold it as a memory. The idea of being able to do that is amazing to me. I've always been artistic, if you hadn't already figured out, and photography is something I really got into when I was 11 and 12. Taking pictures and capturing memories is something that makes me really happy.
Thing Number Nine
My your group also makes me happy. I'm not religious, by any means, but my youth group is so small that were really tight knit. We go on lots of trips and attend lots of evens together, and some of my favorite memories are with them. We did a summer camp last summer, and while there was a lot of drama and disagreements that week, it was probably still one of the best things I did that summer, and I don't regret it. These people make me unbelievably happy.
Thing Number Ten
Last but not least is my art! Words can't express how much I absolutely love drawing. Drawing helps me escape, much like writing, and I don't know what I would've done with my life if I wasn't able to draw. I've been drawing since I was just a kid, and I've always wanted to be an artist. While those aspirations have changed, my love for art hasn't.
And that's Day 1! Thanks for reading!
Question Of The Chapter: What are 10 things that make you happy?
Ciao until tomorrow! - Gray
