I am happy, and I am me.

At the beginning of every day, I like to ask myself, "If I died today, would I be happy with how I spent my time?" In college, the answer was usually, "No." Don't get me wrong. I loved college. In a lot of ways, I really did. I love learning; I love art. But I didn't love the town I was in, and I always felt like I had a lack of space, a lack of control over my life and the things in it. I felt so far away from so many people who I loved.

But now. Surprisingly, the answer is usually, "Yes." I love my job. I really do. I love the weather here. I have a studio space, a great living space, am surrounded by good company, and have plenty of time to work on my art. Yes, this situation is temporary, and I will probably be moving on in a few months. But for now, I will allow myself to savor it, each and every day.

Today, we drove back from a few days well spent in San Diego. Walking into my place, I noticed that my work table was set and ready for me, the sunlight was streaming into the windows,and that my bed looked fantastic. So I did the only thing that made sense: I opened all the windows to let the spring-like breeze stream into my room, got cozy in bed with the third book in the Eragon series, and read until I fell asleep, feeling very happy indeed.