“Enjoyment is not a goal; it is a feeling that accompanies important, ongoing activity.”
- Paul Goodman.
In the case of Bipolar Disorder, enjoyment can be manic or it can be normal. Often those with Bipolar Disorder value the drama of mania over the mundane, everyday enjoyment of the ordinary.
What constitutes “important,” ongoing activity? The answer is: Does it move you forward? Is it lasting, resurfacing at significant events in a life, rather than ephemeral, a transient thrill soon lost in racing thoughts?
A child outgrows its childhood; a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. Mania of the moment is outlived. We prevail by life lived in the present. Enjoyment is found in the “ever present, now.”
Ten Ways to Enjoy the Ordinary
- Smell a rose.
- Study a leaf’s patterns.
- Sit in stillness.
- Look at the sky.
- Observe clouds.
- Appreciate the weight of a stone.
- Take a warm bath.
- Study your hand as if it is an object.
- Run a finger down the arm of a loved one or lover.
- Draw pictures on a steamy mirror.
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