I think that simple pleasures really do bring the most enjoyment in life.

my pleasure is my garden, i love spending time out there, growing and pruning, and potting on plants. It would be even better if I could actually sit and enjoy my work (sigh )but it is great when I can look at my beautiful garden and know its all my own work. the other simple pleasures in my life are my pets. I have 2 cats and a dog and I love them to bits. Last week we went to norfolk for a week, right by the sea near a bird sanctuary. I was able to walk by the sea with my dog and take a cine picture of the sea ebbing and flowing on to the beach, with that lovely scrabbley noise you get when the sea goes over the pebbles , download to my computor, so I will be able to watch and listen to it to relax and unwind.

most of the simple pleasures that brings us great enjoyment in life are free but only a few realized this, since we are too busy to stop and realize it. living along the beach, i find great pleasure in watching the sun sets, illuminating the sea and beachfront in a different kind of light. ttalong with this, it's a joy watching the little children frolicking at the edge of the sea water, trying to imitate their elders in harvesting some native little shells. during this summer season, i find great joy watching the kids competing with each other flying their kite the highest. just listening to their laughter and giggles makes your heart sing and looking at the kite flying against the backdrop of a clear blue sky makes you say that indeed the world is a beautiful place to live in.

Yep, every day. We moved to the country, in the mountains, three years ago. We used to live in a large (and growing) city and, even though there were lots of trees around, the neighbors were just a wall away. Now, we live in a house on 3 1/2 acres of land and a large part of the land fronts a private lake. Our neighbors aren't too far but we can't see them once the trees have filled out. The lake, since it's private, is always quiet and serene. There is a family of blue herons that live somewhere nearby because we see them occasionally in the lake or in the trees surrounding the lake. I go outside every day that the weather allows me to. I can sit out there and forget about life and it's problems. My passion is gardening with fishing being a close second. Sometimes, though, I just sit on the deck and take in nature, the breeze through the trees, the birds singing, frogs croaking, with the occasional moo from the cattle farm across the road or a stupid rooster who never seems to know what time it is because he's always cockle-doodle-dooing. This is what I've wanted most of my life, since I was a little girl. I honestly never thought I'd realize this dream and, even though I had to wait until I was 55 years old, I finally got it. So, all the nature, the fishing and the gardening all cost nothing or very little. I do buy seeds for the garden every year but also collect seeds from the plants each year. I just keep wanting to add to the garden so I'll buy new seeds but they don't cost much. I also make my own compost so that's free, too. It's now time to start soft-wood cuttings to make new plants. I learned how to do that not too long ago and have rooted many plant cuttings already. That way, I'm able to have new plants that I don't have to spend a penny for. It always makes me happy to see roots grow from what was once just a twig.

I agree with you. I always use my free time to spend with my son. We used to go nearby park, and spend lot of time there. This gives really pleasure and enjoyment. As we are all in a machine like life, we should allot sometime to spend and free us to enjoy the life.

Money is not just all to give you peace of mind, one can buy a house, not a home, one can get a woman not a wife, more over there is a limit in money earning It is our family members that keep us happy, next comes the friend circle.. Thanks for sharing. Welcome always. Cheers. Prof

Yes i have similar free pleasure. I know so many rich people who has lot of money but they are not happy. I also know some poor people who are really happy. So i believe money can not bring all the happiness. And small happiness give us very big enjoyment in our life, That's why we should celebrate all small happiness. Be happy always!

As a Zen practitioner, I practice daily meditation and focusing the mind really gets me to see that the simple things in life are all we have really. We have experience that nobody can take from us, and it's this experience that eventually shows us who we really are. We own nothing really, and it is chasing after things that causes unhappiness, as Buddha discovered on his enlightenment. Desire only brings more desire and with it frustration, because the desiring mind, never has enough. _Derek

Hi oldchem1! Indeed the best things in life are free! When was the last we listened to the quiet rhythm of our breathing? When was the last time we appreciated the subtle beauty of things taken for granted? When looking down at a little baby, and having them smile and giggle when they see us is priceless! Spending the last few minutes of sunset each day just watching the sun disappear into the horizon is one of the simple pleasures that bring pure joy to my heart.

Hi Oldchem, Well my first simple pleasure of the day was waking up this morning to birdsong outside and a sleepy son coming in and saying morning mummy. I have a very small garden so my extended garden is two miles of glorious sandy beach within walking distance, it is also on the edge of the beginning of the jurassic coastline so I have been fossil hunting with my son there and found an ammonite which could be millions of years old. I love to take a stoll or a bike ride with him and enjoy the countryside around. His giggle making me giggling is such a simple thing but such a magical thing too. I too have little money but we have many free days out. We have a donkey sanctuary near us too which is free to enter and there are many walks within that too and also seeing these wonderful cretures happy in their retirment home. Huggles. Ellie :D

i agree. of course we need money to buy our needs but sometimes even we already bought what we need there is not enough pleasure that this bring. we too are not rich, but the simple things are the one that makes me happy. when i make my wife laugh that brings me happiness. a feeling that money can not buy. when our son hugs us and kiss us that is another happiness that money can not buy. simple but yet very satisfying.

They sure are. I have a few strawberry plants, and will not pick if i think the grandchildren are coming. I enjoy watching them pick the strawberries with their buts in the air. Bringing them to me to wash and stem. They have big cheeks for a minute and down they go. Very good for them and fun for the adults.

Our favourite thing to do on nice days is go to the park. We can honestly spend the full day there and my kids will still be sad that they have to leave. Our park has an aniomal corner with donkeys, pigs etc that my daughter in 3 years has never got tired of. She knows all the animals by name. There is also a big pond where she feeds the ducks and then there is the playgroung. Her favourite is the slide and her little brother who is not yet walking loves the baby swings. Out of all the fancy indoor play centres and things that we have here, the park is still my children's favourite.

I am short of money too and yes, fun can be free, like taking the dog for a walk in the park, photographing scenery and animals or going to a friend's house for a chat. I also get lots of pleasure from reading books and watching DVDs. Of course, these things cost something when I bought them, but I have lots of books I haven't read and films I haven't seen, some were bought years ago, so they are kind of free entertainment. Anyway, I enjoy reading and watching a good film.

I could say I do have those free pleasures. I have also come from a family where being rich doesn't mean being FINANCIALLY rich, but instead being rich in wisdom, in talent, in health and in love. I was raised not actually getting every material thing that I desire. Despite all these, I have come to find appreciation to the simpler yet much meaningful things that I encounter in my everyday life. My previous experiences have made me realize that the real and most genuine of all the happiness you could get doesn't necessarily rely only on the concrete stuff you could obtain like gadgets or clothes or food or whatever... One can be rich with materialistic treasures of whatever monetary worth, but could still end up deprived of true happiness, right? Perhaps being financially underprivileged had even helped me to come to these realizations. I could be no more thankful to God than that. I still feel very fortunate after all of what I have been through, because at the end of the day, I know I have been able to obtain my own happiness even through the simple but joyful moments I have spent with my friends and my family, or through the beauty that life makes me see in my surroundings. Perhaps it could only take a dose of optimism for you to be able to find real fun and enjoyment in everything that comes along your way. The best things in life are free, as the saying goes. I must agree with that, now. And from another quote, the happiest of people doesn't have the best of everything... they make the best of everything... Don't you think so? :)

I love the looks of my community, and love to walk, even downtown. We have some parks with lakes and lots of wildlife. Yes, I do love free entertainment. Last year they doubled the size of our library, and it is such a wonderful place to visit, to sit and read newspapers or magazines. They put in stained glass windows and a genealogy room and the feel is so luxurious, but it is all free, unless I keep something too long. Inside or outside there is lots of free fun.

One of my favorite things to do is to sit and enjoy a good book. Well, I guess this isn't completely free because even if we check it out at the library, we are still paying taxes that go toward the library. However, even if we don't check out any books, we still have to pay the taxes....so for the sake of argument we will consider checking out books at the library free. I like to sit on a bench at a park, sit on a chair on my back stoop, or even on the couch on a rainy day, and read a good book. Even if I am in the middle of watching a good program on television, I will read a book during the commercials from time to time. It seems if you get a really good book, it is just impossible to put down. Yesterday and the day before, I worked on doing some planting in the back yard. I dug up a bunch of overgrown mint, lillies and bushes on one day. Then the next day, I planted some tomatoe plants and some cabbages. The plants cost a little bit of money, but not much so it is almost free. The amount that I will have saved in the long run when I get all of those tomatoes off the plants will be worth a lot more than I paid. Plus, I am getting exercise and it makes me feel as if I have accomplished something. Enjoy the simple things in life my friend!

I believe that blessings seldom come on a lump sum basis. They often come in trickles. But when you put all those little things together, they are way bigger than the biggest blessing you can ever wish for. So we must learn to enjoy the little blessings that come our way. My simple pleasures include: seeing a baby smile, listening to my favorite music, reading my best friend's emails every day, laughing at jokes and just being with my family and friends.

I like playing in the rain with my friends and sometimes alone so this does not need money nor good clothes what it needs is enjoyment and a will power to do what we want to do so life indeed gives many simple pleasures which in return give tremendous enjoyment.

There you go. I feel you are on the right track and found out the actual sources of true happiness. Today's man is just running after the money and he thinks that money will buy him everything. If he doesn't get money he get unhappy. But in course of gaining money he loses a lot. He doesn't look at the sky, the clouds, moon, starts, flowers blooming all over, trees, etc. If at all he takes some time to view this, his life would be full of happiness. I read a story in which a man complains to God that God has given him nothing. In reply, God says you have got everything. You have the beautiful blue sky, the oceans, the rivers, the trees, the beautiful flowers, fruits and what not things. If you only look at those you will get immense happiness. Why are you sad my dear? On this the man realizes his error and finds true happiness.