100daysofhappiness – Mimi's Thoughts

Darling June

I love June.

I haven’t always loved June… June became my favorite month because it gave me my son. That was the year 2013. Since then, it has carried a kind of quiet significance for me. I’ve written about that here before, and every year when June arrives, I subconsciously expect it to leave a mark.

Last year, June almost disappointed me. It was shaping up to be one of those months I’d rather forget until an unexpected rescue arrived.
It wasn’t a person or a dramatic event, it was a book series. The Windy City Series found me at exactly the right time. Those stories didn’t solve my problems, but they gave me somewhere to rest emotionally. They kind of reminded me that sometimes healing comes disguised as entertainment. Yes it does.

This year was different though… Nothing spectacular happened. There weren’t any major milestones or life-changing announcements. And yet, as June comes to an end, I realize it has been one of my favorite months in a long time.

It was peaceful.

Somewhere between the ordinary days, I noticed something had changed. I wasn’t carrying the same weight I’d been carrying for months. Since my former boss’s contract ended in March, I’ve slowly been recovering from a season that left me constantly stressed, irritable, and emotionally exhausted. I didn’t notice the healing while it was happening. But June made me aware of it.

For the first time in a while, I caught up with myself. I watched lots of movies. I disappeared into television series. I finished books simply because I wanted to, not because I was trying to escape. I laughed more. I rested more. I lived at a gentler pace. A very gentle pace.

Looking back, I think that’s what made June beautiful. June was very kind.

We’re often taught to measure good months by promotions, celebrations, achievements, or life-changing moments. I’m thinking this; maybe some months deserve to be remembered for something quieter. Maybe some months exist simply to return us to ourselves.

June 2026 was that month for me.

It whispered, “Rest. You’re allowed to.”

And perhaps that was exactly what I needed.

Little pieces of Happiness

My friend Nguwa sent me these words in a picture, I decided to transcribe them and share them here. I searched for the author so that I could give them the credit but I wasn’t lucky.

To whoever wrote them, thank you. They are beautiful.

A big part of happiness lies in feeling genuinely excited—excited about the little things. Like making a cup of coffee and really savoring it. Like meeting a friend who feels like home. Like looking forward to the next episode of a show that makes you smile. It’s about saving for something special and finally holding it in your hands. Watching a sunset that reminds you that endings, too, can be beautiful.

It’s about traveling and discovering new sides of yourself. About falling in love, even if it’s just for a moment. Finishing a book that lingers with you long after the last page. Hearing a song that stirs up old, forgotten memories. Laughing unexpectedly, from a place deep inside.

True happiness doesn’t always come from big achievements. It lives in the quiet, ordinary moments—if only we choose to notice them.

To Nguwa, thank you for sharing these words with me and for the coffee, music, laughter and other moments we share together.

Sarah

Dear Sarah Yahaya

I don’t know where you are.

I hope you see this someday.

The last time I saw you was when we left our secondary school in 1999. 26 years ago…but today I think of you.

I flash back to the days when you would tell us, “it’s more blessed to give than receive”. You said it jokingly. And we repeated it jokingly too.

Today, I gave and I felt so happy.

My dad once made the same statement my neighbour just made; “You give more than necessary”.

I think I feel happy when I give.

Today I want to appreciate Sarah Yahaya. Maybe I was born this way, maybe you influenced me. Either way, I agree… I feel blessed when I give.

Thank you Sarah

My Quest

For a long while, I’ve worried about my need for happiness.

I formulated a saying in my head “you only earnestly seek what you don’t have” and it worries me…because it implies I’m unhappy.

Am I?

I really don’t think so.

I started a happiness challenge on the 13th of May. I tagged it 100 days of happiness.

Somewhere along the line, I changed it to lifetime of happiness.

The 20th day of August would have been my 100 days…but why stop at 100?

I must say, it hasn’t been an easy challenge but I’m proud to announce that I could count with one hand the number of times I’ve let a sad moment linger too long…

…and with one finger, the number of times I’ve cried sad tears.

With intentionality as my key, I forge on.

I yearn for happiness.

And I hope that the following quote by Rumi applies; “what you seek is seeking you”.

Beginning

The one thing we fail to consider when we want to achieve a goal is the number of obstacles we will face.

Achieving a goal in life, especially in adulthood is like a pentathlon.

I had decided that today (13th May,2023) would be the day I start my #100daysofhappiness challenge. I genuinely want to be happy and I thought I should give it a shot.

The day started as early as 7am with a husband and wife squabble. Hopefully, with enough effort and understanding from both of us, everything continued amazingly smooth.

To kick start the 100 days of happiness, I had been looking forward to a preplanned lunch date with my friends (secondary school mates). Somehow, almost everyone cancelled and so we had to reschedule.

I didn’t want to let the cancellation put me in a bad mood; I was already dressed up and ready to head out when the last message for reschedule reached me.

And so I went out.

I went with SonTer (my son) to Ifeanyi from Sunday vibes and did a little restocking for the home. We stopped over for some take out and we headed home. It was a refreshing outing and I was happy.

On our way home, we remembered we hadn’t gotten eggs and drinking water… that’s when I got really happy today at D.O Brothers Store .

#100happydays #intensionalliving

What you seek, you find

As weird as it may sound, one of my happy places is D.O Brothers store. It isn’t a fancy place where I can hang and chill. It’s just a place where I stock up on my household needs.

It is a walking distance from my bake shop and seven minute drive from my home.

It is a family business and the owners are very friendly with their customers. On most evenings, the crowd is usually overwhelming for Zubi and Onyeka at the payment stand. Almost every family stops by between 6pm and 7:30pm.

When I walked it today, I decided to write about them and their hospitality…it is top notch. It’s the reason many people go there.

I had just come from Ifeanyi’s place and I wanted to add to my happy day…I saw a girl and asked her to take a photo of me.

Two minutes later, I found out her name was Shidoo and she was an agent for Nestle Golden Morn. I told her my son loved it and I bought a pack.

She told me I qualified for a scratch card for the purchase and when I scratched, I won ₦200 airtime in my MTN line.

I had set out to have a happy day and it turned out really good.