Perfect Little Things

“Most of life is just junk. It's filler. And then, there are these moments when all the randomness turns into something perfect.” - The Map of Tiny Perfect Things. This quote is from one of my all-time favorite movies! If you’ve never watched The Map of Tiny Perfect Things, it is about two people stuck in a time loop. They repeat the same day over and over again, visiting new spots in their town that typically go unnoticed but are practically perfect. Since watching this movie, I have started to appreciate the perfect little things in life. I’ve cherished everything from move-in day at the state officer house, to ranking random flavors of soda (dirt, grass, etc.), to watching scary movies late at night with the team. While I just started focusing on the perfect little things this year, I can’t help but reflect on previous years and see the perfect little things. Looking at some of the biggest moments in my life, I can now see the amazing memories in both the best and worst moments. Some of my best moments are only made better by noticing the little things. When I won my county’s master showmanship, it was not the winning that was so special; it was celebrating with my family afterward and getting to mentor future winners. But it is not only in the good times that I have learned to focus on the little things. I must also force myself to focus on the little things even during the hard times. The week I won master showmanship was also the week that my mother broke her leg. I found myself working through my fair week without the person who had helped me train all of my animals that summer. While it was hard, I can look back and appreciate the perfect little things that happened at the same time. That week, I got a banner for the first time ever with my cattle, was in the grand drive for cattle in both breeding and market, and most importantly, was surrounded by my fair family, who did anything they could to help me. 4-H members and parents in all barns helped my family out by making sure I could get my animals ready for show day, and the livestock directors did everything they could to ensure I was still able to do my best in the show ring. Focusing on the good doesn’t mean ignoring the hard moments – it means choosing to focus on the beauty that can still exist within them. The perfect little things are often small and easily overlooked, but when we take the time to see them, the good gets better. I can honestly say that when you focus on the good, the good does get better. So take time to notice the perfect little things; write them down, share them, celebrate them, and if at all possible, create them. Life may not be perfect or easy, but there’s magic in the moments we often overlook.