As I was driving to Sacramento, CA, this past weekend, I found myself incredibly happy about being able to use the carpool lane on the 405 freeway during Friday morning traffic.

No joke. Yes, my excitement from such an event doesn’t come anywhere close to the excitement I feel from significant things, like when my nephew was born or my films get a new screening date, but nonetheless, it’s an excitement that feels nice and happens a lot more often than the really momentous kind.

And this got me thinking…how do the little things affect people? (And by “little thing” I mean something that has small to no value in the grand scheme of one’s life.) If one is too focused on the larger and more serious events in one’s life, will time be given to “smell the roses” and pay attention to the little things that happen during the course of the day? And if so, will one focus only on the negative little things, like getting a parking ticket or stepping in gum, rather than the positive little things, like the perfect consistency of a banana or no line at the grocery store? And if one does see a positive little thing for what it is, not dwelling on it but enjoying it, and deal with the negative little things as a part of life and move on accordingly, will one’s existence be that much more enjoyable?

I think so.