Working out the little things that please you takes the edge off the New Year blues

It’s January. For the past couple of weeks, most of us have overindulged in eating, drinking and general merriment. Having the television on the whole day has been perfectly acceptable as was the sweet sherry at 11am whilst peeling potatoes (or is that just me?)

We’ve been surrounded by our loved ones and we’ve been allowed to get a little sentimental.

But now that’s it’s January, we must pull ourselves together, find the old clothes at the back of the cupboard that accommodate our slightly wider waistlines and head back to work. It’s a shock to the system. Our hearts and our credit cards are struggling with a post-Christmas hangover.

So this is the time of year that I like to look for the little things that please me. The sometimes whimsical, often quirky little things that cost me nothing but make me smile. Yours, no doubt, will be entirely different, but here are a few of mine:

? Discovering that the avocado that you’re cutting into is perfectly ripe. This also applies to mangoes.

? Finding your favourite parking spot vacant. And, even better, there’s a free space next to it.

? A house that smells of a Sunday roast and a log fire.

? The sharp edges of a new bar of soap.

? Watching your dog enthusiastically eat its dinner.

? Feeling the warmth of sun on your face on a cold day. There’s a word for this, I’m told – Apricity. Sometimes I can angle my face so that I can feel the sun’s warmth right down into my ear, which is even better. I should have warned you that some of these would be very random!

? Melted cheese. On anything.

? The exquisite serendipity of your windshield wipers moving in time with the music in your car

? Discovering that someone else has changed the loo roll

? At a train station, getting to your parked car before the train you just alighted from has left the station.

? My Aga.

? My son letting me stroke the back of his head after he’s just had a short haircut.

? Men in kilts.

? A clean bath towel, line-dried and crisp. (I am aware that some people prefer soft bath towels, but for me, the crunchier the better).

? Seeing a wild deer.

? The moment you submerge yourself up to the neck in a steaming hot bath.

? Waking up and suddenly realising that this is one of those rare occasions when you can sleep as long as you like.

? The synchronicity of sending someone a text or an email at the very moment they are sending one to you.

? Making your children laugh. Intentionally.

So there we have it. Just a few of the little things that please me. It’s important to notice them, I think. Rather than wait for some big, exciting news to celebrate, I heartily recommend celebrating each and every small victory in life. Even if it’s just that someone else has changed the loo roll.

Follow Emma Samms on Twitter: @emmasamms1