All in all, I live a pretty abundant life. Maybe not exactly according to society’s $tandard$ because heaven knows after all the bills are paid, there’s not much left for miscellaneous expenses.

Okay, so that’s not exactly true either. If I am able to buy the things I fancy online, that’s because I get them on sale. I never felt deprived. Quite the opposite, actually. Albeit on a budget.

I reckon I’m doing okay in life. I mean, just this morning while making coffee, I was like, “Wow! We have sugar!”

Doesn’t take a lot to gratify me, obviously. But there I stood in the kitchen marveling at my beautiful brown sugar crystals and thanking the universe in amazement over the simple fact that we have such valuable commodity easily available in the house. And more on the way if I can be bothered going to Coles to do some grocery shopping. (Note to self: Popit is down to her last cat food.)

And then, there was also me eagerly telling Jeff how the water I boiled at 5am this morning is still steaming hot as of this writing — seven. hours. later! All thanks to this yellow vintage-looking thermos I found sitting around the house. I don’t know whose is it but I’m grateful to that person who probably lost/misplaced it here. If the rightful owner asks for it back, I’d probably be a little devastated. I have come to love this darling little thing.

Gratitude. It really is about the simple things in life.

Like being able to eat out once in a while. Sharing a meal of koobideh and rice with goji berries which comes with a side salad and Afghan bread with the family. Fighting the urge to ask the female staff what she uses to line her eyes so darkly and so beautifully.

Or it could be as simple as celebrating your daughter’s mermaid doll’s birthday. A make-believe story spun the night before turned into something more tangible the next day — with a lighted cloud candle on top of a nutella donut and with all her favourite toy friends in attendance to witness Jeff, Raven, and me singing the mermaid a happy birthday. The Aussie way, no less — with a hip hip hooray! at the end of the song.

Meanwhile, Popit was oblivious to all the party fun which was mainly Raven beating me again and again on a matching game cut out of the box of Arnott’s Tiny Teddy.

And to cap the night off, Raven and I did a bit of art. I wanted to learn how to draw faces and she wanted to copy me, too. She got frustrated after she couldn’t get it right the first try and I took it as my cue to instill in her — and me — the value of patience and dedication.

“Look, mama’s not happy with her drawing, either, so I tried and tried and tried and you know what…” I said, showing her my dog’s vomit of an effort. “Sometimes you just have to keep trying and that’s okay.”

In the end, she did her own thing. She’s great at drawing. Very talented at it. I’m the only one who needs a how-to book, to be honest with you.

*Raven at 4 years old