This past Saturday, my youngest son got married. In May my oldest granddaughter will graduate from college, and my middle granddaughter will graduate from high school. My oldest grandson will turn 21, and my youngest grandson will be headed to kindergarten. In July, my entire family will convene in Detroit for our family reunion, and in August, my husband and I will celebrate 45 years of marriage. All of these events are what people call major milestones. All of these events require some form of celebration because they are important life experiences. Graduations, the birth of a child, birthdays, winning playoffs, and retirements are all good reasons to celebrate. By definition, they are milestones in a person’s life (“an action or event marking a significant change or stage in development” Webster). Yet, some days it feels like a major milestone just to get out of bed. (Perhaps that just me.)

When you become a certain age, you began to count small victories as great milestones. Every day that my 91-year-old mom gets up and is physically and mentally able to care for herself, we take a victory lap. Every day that I conquer depression and function as a wife, daughter, teacher, author and friend is a day to celebrate in song. (Singing and music is my muse.) What may seem minor to others may be great events in your eyes. Things like overcoming negative self-talk and maintaining peace in the midst of other people’s chaos calls for a celebration. Being able to stay on budget and plan a vacation or getting a good report from the doctor can be a personal milestone. The size of the celebration may not warrant lots of party hoopla, but these events are worthy of a festive observance. You can celebrate with a glass of wine (my favorite standby) or have lunch with a friend. You can plan a special date night or make a positive social media post. Another favorite of mine is to journal my gratitude, listen to my favorite playlist, or get dressed up and take myself out on the town.

So what if you didn’t start a new job or get that promotion, you are still worth celebrating. So, you lost five pounds instead of 15, that’s a step in the right direction, congratulate yourself. The small wins in life are just as important as the huge milestones. Acknowledge the pebbles that lead to the stones. Short-term goals lead to accomplishing long-term goals. You are still on planet earth; you made it through a pandemic, it’s time to celebrate. If you are still above water in these inflationary times, that’s quite an accomplishment. If you can count five people who truly love and care for you, that’s extraordinary. If you have finally seen one of your goals come to fruition, celebrate. If you have peace in your soul and contentment in your heart, I’d say that deserves special recognition.

Small milestones (pebbles) may not lead to bigger milestones (mountains), but when you acknowledge the small things, it will be harder for disappointment to bring you down. Thoughts like I didn’t hit a home run, but I made it to second base is a lot different from I’m not very good at baseball. Things didn’t go the way I planned them today, but tomorrow is a new day, and I’m going to give it all I’ve got is a different thought process from I never win, nothing ever goes my way. I haven’t finished my latest book, but I finished this blog, cheers to me! I’m going to sit on the front porch with a glass of wine, the novel I’m reading, and enjoy the moment. The birds will sing. The chipmunks will scatter, and I will be happy that I accomplished this small thing today.

What little pebbles have you overlooked? Did you control your temper today? Did you release your anxieties through mindfulness exercises? Did you enjoy a garden salad and skip the decadent chocolate cake? Did you have a communication breakthrough with your wayward child or your significant other? Did someone tell you how much they love you? Did you get through rush hour without an accident or crisis? Did you find some old pictures that brought sweet memories and made you smile? What can you find to celebrate today? Trust me, there’s always a reason to be grateful, and there’s always a reason to celebrate.

Slow down! Reflect! Be grateful! Celebrate life.