Driving down the street, you hit a string of green lights, one after another. It’s just another day.
Moments later, you hit a string of red lights. Suddenly, you feel the urge to honk the horn or complain to the innocent bystander in the passenger seat, the universal exasperation that lingers long after the light changes, and the day continues as usual.
Life is full of these annoyances. It is easy to let them weigh on us, to dwell on the red lights. This is our default; what takes effort is noticing and appreciating the good, happy things.
In Book of Delights, one of AP Literature’s summer reading books, author Ross Gay makes this effort. A journal of 100 happy things, each daily log recounts one small, random delight that brought Gay joy that day, ranging from strangers’ greetings to tomato saplings and hummingbirds.
At M-A, students’ lives are full of delights; all it takes is a second to think. To ensure that these moments of joy don’t go unnoticed, I asked students and staff around campus to recount the small things that make them smile—their “delights.”
Ceramics teacher Mike Burton-Tillson:
“Looking out in my backyard into a group of redwood trees. They change everyday, and sometimes there’s a rainbow.”
Senior Angel Gomez:
“Seeing my friends Jamie, Bryan, and Gavin, as well as my girlfriend Amy everyday. I see them quite often, but it still gives me a lot of joy for me to be with them.”
Junior Mae Kunihiro:
“I like seeing a singular flower. Not one with other flowers, just a flower on its own. Like when I’m walking and there is a little dandelion right there. I don’t pick it up and blow it. Keep nature pure.”
Freshman Ruby Juarez:
“Seeing the stuffed animal that my dad gave me last year. I love it.”
Junior Monte Galvan:
“Getting sweets with my mom. She always likes to get cookies and other desserts in Palo Alto or at Crumbl. My favorite cookie is probably a snickerdoodle.”
Sophomore Meliyah Holmes:
“I like to lay in my bed, my bed makes me so happy.”
Sophomore Avery Williams:
“When I see my friends at school and they come up and give me a hug. It’s so sweet and it means a lot to be appreciated.”
Sophomore Stella Hall:
“When I wake up in the morning and my mom gives me fruit that she cut up for me.”
Senior Lilah Chen:
“I woke up this morning really early for Senior Sunrise but I felt so awake. I wasn’t lethargic and dead like I expected. I felt awake and I felt alive.”
Senior Zoe Fong:
“Blasting music so loud that I can feel the music go down my spine and I can feel in the floor. Sometimes I’ll just lay on my floor and listen.”
Junior Nataly Flores:
“When my dad picks me up at eight and he buys me takis out of nowhere. Sometimes, when I get off my period, he buys me takis or jocotes, this one green Salvadorian fruit—they’re really good.”
Freshman Giselle Huezo:
“My boyfriend Eric. He’s really silly and he’s very funny and he makes me laugh a lot.”
