| Several years ago I travelled through Europe, riding | | | | choosing to include such delights for the senses as |
| trains, heaving a backpack around, and staying at | | | | often as you can, in fact, it is vital to take the time to |
| hole-in-the-wall hotels with slanting floors and 40 watt | | | | embrace those small things that make life more |
| lightbulbs hanging from cords out of the ceilings. I ate | | | | pleasant. |
| arrowroot cookies and apples from corner grocers | | | | You can apply this delicious concept to anything that |
| and whatever was cheapest on the menu at small | | | | gives you a morsel of delight in your day. Try having |
| cafes. | | | | your morning coffee in your favourite cup before |
| One morning in France in a town whose name and | | | | anyone else in the house is up so you can savour the |
| location I have long forgotten, I stopped for breakfast | | | | silence at the start of a new day. Take a solitary walk |
| at a tiny bakery with a few wooden tables scattered | | | | in the afternoon and feel the sun on your face. Buy |
| about on a tiled floor. The morning sunlight streamed | | | | yourself flowers. Go to the beach and collect shells or |
| through the windowpanes and as I pushed open the | | | | just watch the waves. God means for us to enjoy the |
| door the aroma of fresh warm bread and the sweet | | | | abundance he has provided. |
| smell of baking sugar nearly made me swoon. I chose | | | | Treating yourself with kindness means paying attention |
| a miniscule table near the window in a blazing | | | | to the small details that lift your spirit. If you are a |
| sunbeam and plunked my pack on the floor as I | | | | chocolate lover like me, try going to a chocolate |
| scraped the legs of a wooden chair across the floor | | | | boutique and buying yourself some fabulous truffles, |
| and sat down. | | | | one or two for each day of the coming week. Or |
| A round woman with in a floury apron appeared from | | | | rather than waiting until Christmas, treat yourself now |
| somewhere behind a glass counter filled with the days | | | | to a box of chocolates. If you can make them last all |
| offerings, edible jewels in buttery pastry poised to | | | | week, you can savour the pleasure that much longer. If |
| tempt even the most devoutly determined dieter. She | | | | you can't or don't want to, oh well. |
| offered a miniature cup of espresso and pain au | | | | Think about the things that you really enjoy, those little |
| chocolat. Similar to a croissant but with layers of rich | | | | things that you love to do, that may have become lost |
| dark chocolate rolled into the swirls of buttery puff | | | | in the rush of life. Do you love quiet time to read? |
| pastry, pain au chocolat (pronounced pan oh shocotah) | | | | Decide on a time to include a reading break in your |
| for breakfast is like starting the day with a little bit of | | | | day. Are you getting enough sleep? Try going to bed |
| heaven. I accepted with alacrity and something akin, I | | | | earlier. Think of it as a retreat from the rest of the |
| admit, to avarice. | | | | world. If you enjoy beautiful music, put some on while |
| The French are famous for their joie de vivre, which | | | | you drive or work. |
| translates, joy of life, but you don't have to be French | | | | We must continually treat ourselves to luscious |
| or even live in France to indulge in and enjoy those | | | | moments, morsels and delights. These self-loving gifts |
| kinds of special treats. Living with lusciousness means | | | | are the stuff of everyday lusciousness. |