I’ve recently come to a conclusion that many who have come before me already know: The little things in life are where you can foster and find real joy.

Since graduating college a few months ago, I’ve felt myself revert back to who I am at my core. As much as college is glamorized as being the best years of your life, it’s so stressful. 

This time last year, I was starting homework assignments at 11 p.m. Around last April, I pulled an all-nighter to write a seven-page paper about vampires for one of my classes. 

You heard me right. Vampires. It’s like I was destined to come work in Covington.

But what on Earth do vampires have to do with where I am now? Nada. That’s what. 

At the time I didn’t really resent the class, and having to watch the original 1922 silent film Nosferatu certainly gave me a lot to say when the modern adaption was released. 

But this isn’t a column about the usefulness of my education; rather, I use this example to say how my time was taken up by things of relatively low long-term consequence and little-to-no personal fulfillment.

Though I graduated, I have quite a few friends who are still wrapping up their degrees. And being in such close proximity to them, I’ve been afforded a unique opportunity to hold myself in mirroring juxtaposition. And let’s just say, I’m not sure why people say college is the best time of your life because I’m definitely happier and a more authentic version of myself now than I was then.

Let me give you a few examples of how.

As a child, I was a huge reader. It definitely impacted how I got to be a decent writer. I read the Harry Potter books in second grade if that tells you anything about how much of a reader I really was. Throughout the rest of my childhood, I stayed a reader, but that started to drift in high school as I just got busier. Between class, work and sports, reading time got cut.

I had a resurgence of reading in 2020 when I was abruptly afforded much more free time. A year later, when I graduated high school and embarked on college, I had to put down the books. Time was, once again, hard to come by.

Post-grad, I’ve got to enjoy a privilege I’ve never known. When I leave work, when I clock out, that’s it. No more needs to be done. I do work in a field where I have to be available at the drop of the hat should something happen, but that’s different from guaranteed homework every single night. Plus I like my job. 

But the point is that, for the first time ever, my evenings are entirely my own, and though that may not seem like much, that freedom is invaluable to me.

I’ve dove back into reading. I actually just finished the newest Hunger Games prequel, so I’m still recovering from the emotional hangover that left me with. Don’t even get me started on how utterly heartbreaking that read was.

Then, for my recent birthday, I got acrylic paint markers and a coloring pad. Again, that may sound elementary, but it’s actually really enjoyable and peaceful to doodle with such pigmented ink while playing a movie. Don’t knock it until you try it, people.

I’ve also picked up an audiobook of the original Sherlock Holmes stories. My dad has always been a big fan of Mr. Holmes and Dr. Watson, and so I’d dabbled in the stories growing up. I never actually read the originals though, just the spinoffs geared towards children. So far, I’ve made it through “A Study in Scarlet” and “The Sign of Four.” Good stuff, for sure.

Then, one of my own personal appreciations is for coffee. That may be evident in my last column, in which coffee played a major role. But I’m a big fan, and in the last year, I’ve really gotten into the undertones of different kinds of coffee and how brewing in different ways changes flavors. 

I got a simple espresso machine about a year ago, and I have a cold brew carafe as well. Since graduation, I’ve made homemade coffee creamer, blueberry syrup from berries and experimented with hot and cold, decaf and regular, cinnamon, honey, brown sugar, stirring versus shaking and all that fun stuff. Truly, the possibilities are limitless.

Now, if you’ve made it this far through me rambling about all my little joys, I applaud you. This column in particular is certainly all about me. 

But it doesn’t have to be. 

I think that some of the truest beauty in my life has been found in pursuing the little things that make me happy. I look back at my childhood self, and I realize that, though I’ve grown up, the person I am hasn’t really changed. 

The same things still make me happy, even if they’re in more adult formats. So I just encourage people to stop and smell the roses in everyday life. Find the little things that bring you peace and comfort, and carve out whatever time you can for yourself.

Kate Verity is the news editor of The Covington News. She can be reached at kverity@covnews.com.