The other day, I was driving through IU Bloomington with my sister and her friend. We saw this boy slide down the stair rails and run across the street, and he looked so happy. We chuckled as we passed him, and my sister’s friend said he was having his “main character” moment. 

I think we all need to focus on those main character moments more often, the moments when nothing else matters except for what’s happening then and there, and we feel like we are in a movie. I know it’s easy to question if all of the little things in life are worth it, like walking down the stairs or crossing the street. Trust me, I do it all the time. I second guess putting “real” clothes on in the morning, drinking water even though it doesn’t make my taste buds happy or folding my laundry just to wear it the next day. 

Even though I could go on and on about this meaningless life complex I have, it doesn’t matter. At the end of the day, we are only given one life. The good, the bad, the ugly. All of it deserves to be romanticized. And I truly believe we should romanticize it. 

What does it mean to romanticize something? To romanticize something is to make it seem better than it really is. No, I don’t think that we all need to start looking at life with this happy-go-lucky attitude, but I think there is some benefit in appreciating the small gifts life gives us. 

Ask anyone who knows me, I am really good at wallowing in my sorrows. Like really, really good. But sometimes that gets kind of exhausting. Doesn’t it sound nice to wake up every day and be fulfilled by the simple act of seeing the sun rise and hearing the birds chirp? 

I don’t think any of us should romanticize our lives to a point where we possibly invalidate feelings or undermine serious situations. But acting like my life is a movie every day will definitely raise my level of enjoyment on this earth. 

Making breakfast in the morning? Shuffle that favorite playlist. Dance around the kitchen. Use the spatula for the eggs as a microphone. Setting the alarm clock before bed? Scroll through the songs to find the happiest, most upbeat one. Choose a different song for each of the 10 alarms. 

The way we romanticize life doesn’t have to be that crazy. But simply appreciating the little things will make everything seem worth it. The water I don’t want to drink is really good for my body. The clothes I don’t want to put on will make me feel more confident. The breakfast dance I have will make me eat and enjoy my food because I can, not because I have to. 

Life can be really mundane in a technology-driven pandemic. It’s insanely easy to let each day pass without putting in the extra thought and effort to make ourselves feel better. But it’s necessary for our well-being.