I woke up with a heavy heart of disappointment after investing a good amount of time into a person who I thought might be looking for a similar level of companionship that I long to have in my own life. In the past, I’ve harped on what I might have done wrong or how I could change the outcome in the days to follow. But there was something different about this time around.

A bathroom rug.

Yes, you read that correctly. All it took was a trip to Target and the exchanging of my old tattered, worn, brown bathroom rug for a simple blue one. A super-soft sheared surface with textured loops swallowing up my bare feet at the beginning of a new sunrise, a fresh start to a day full of anything and everything. This description might sound a bit melodramatic and well it is, BUT it’s exactly the thoughts that ran through my mind this morning. While this Target purchase might not have made all the difference in my love life or lack thereof, it reminded me how empowering it is to allow yourself to zoom out and re-calibrate your focus towards those little details. It’s easy to get trapped in a mindset – to not know our lives to be any better than the few things not going our way. But what about all of those little things that are going our way, the little moments that are creating those bigger moments?

So how do you train yourself to focus on those small details, those little moments, those drop in the bucket junctures in time?

Start creating. Creating your identity, creating your own happiness, creating your own story, creating your own voice, creating your own destiny. That’s a whole lot of creating. I’m tired.

But seriously, life is a series of the unexpected and the planned, but there is always that opportunity to take what is thrown at you in stride and focus on what you can control. Your energy is lost on those things that are not in your control so keep pushing forward despite the setbacks. Stand by your choices. Stand by what you believe in. Be proud that you put yourself out there to experience life’s moments even if disappointment is always a possibility.

But more importantly, don’t overlook those little things. As a society we tend to focus on all of the big things- graduations, birthdays, awards, career advancement, birth announcements, weddings, and the purchasing of a home. All of those BIG things wouldn’t be possible without a million little things leading up to them.

A hot cup of coffee after a night of writing a paper. A walk on a sunny day. The smell of fresh cut grass. Stopping on a hike to take in your surroundings. Embracing a loved one with a hug. A child’s laugh. A quick dip in the pool. An ice cream cone with extra sprinkles. 5 minutes of extra cuddle time with your pup listening to them peacefully snore.

Those are worth getting up for every morning. Those little moments of joy that sneak in our days.

This morning I was thankful for that blue bathroom rug from Target. It’s super-soft sheared surface reminded me that my feet are on the ground ready to fully embrace all of those little things. That blue rug is where we will find our life characterized by happiness.

Tomorrow I will have warm feet once again and my feeling of disappointment will be engulfed by the possibility of new encounters. The sooner we realize that the little things are where the magic lies, the sooner we allow ourselves to enjoy the present to its fullest, leaving the what ifs and the why mes in the past.