Let’s Celebrate
Everyone has heard some quote about celebrating the little things in life, the small victories, the quiet moments. And we should. I’m a big believer in celebrating every accomplishment and victory no matter how big or small, but how often do we do it? And, if we are good at it, how often do we do it for other people?
When you’re small, all your milestones are celebrated: first roll, first words, first steps, the first bike you ride, the first picture you bring home from school, your first report card. When I got my first B instead of an A on a report card in math, my mom took me out to celebrate, because she knew I’d be upset, so she chose to help me see it as a milestone to celebrate together instead of letting me wallow. It’s great, you feel celebrated and accomplished.
But somewhere along the way we grow up, and the older I’ve gotten, the more I’ve noticed this trend that I’m not so fond of. The accomplishments and milestones still happen, but people’s responses to them change. You tell people about how much you’re enjoying college, and they hit you with the “oh, well just wait until you’re in the real world”. They ask how your new marriage is going, and if you tell them it’s great, and you love being married, you get the “well just wait until the honeymoon’s over”. Parents of kids get it all the time: you think they’re cute now, but just wait until this age, or “enjoy this age, because once they get to the twos or the threes, the next phase, it’s just miserable”. Somewhere along the way people have started taking these great milestones and accomplishments and have started to sow seeds of dread into them or an expectation that this wonderful thing has to turn sour. When did we stop being able to celebrate with people, and why are we trying to commiserate something that didn’t have any misery attached to it in the first place?
We cannot foster a culture of pessimism and dread around us and expect joy as a result. It just doesn’t work like that. It’s draining, and I can promise that no one who has heard any of those comments came away from them feeling supported or encouraged or celebrated.
So, let’s change it. Celebrate with people. They had a good day at work? Let them talk about it and celebrate with them. That newlywed couple looks happy? Telling them. The new parents are talking about how their baby slept through the night? Tell them how great that is. Life gives everyone plenty of hard moments and times where it’s hard to find anything to celebrate, even if you’re looking for the small things. So, leave out the snarky comments, the bitterness, the competitive rivalry that tries to flare up. Nobody, and I mean nobody, needs it.
Remember that feeling of being young, and the people that celebrated you and made your accomplishments feel much larger than they may have been. If you practice having an attitude of celebration and joy with your people, then when it’s time to celebrate you, it’s like reclaiming a little bit of that childhood excitement all over again.
Cheers to everything you accomplish this week, and all the moments that make you feel happy to be alive. I hope you celebrate each and every one.
