In puzzling over the varied ideas for the site, I spent a lot of time mulling the word “favorite.” Yet I think perhaps I should have spent more time on the word “part.” Or at least the word “day.” Both are, in this context, more important.
Favorite is pretty easy to understand, though it’s often connected with a thing more so than a part — and not just because of the song. Your favorite song, favorite TV show, favorite movie and so on. But those favorites tend to evolve over time for a variety of reasons.
I started blogging in April 2004 for two primary purposes: posting my biweekly newspaper column and giving updates about the baby we were expecting that month. It turns out I also used the space to write what I thought was insightful commentary on the Cubs season, which expanded into my thoughts on the absolute garbage television I watched then, and eventually posting links to websites, stories, videos and so on — the kind of thing that I eventually stopped once Facebook became a more suitable dumping ground.
Ultimately, it could be said a lot of what was posted then was a favorite “thing” I came across: a piece of great commentary, a YouTube hit, a Flash game that sucked up free time, etc. Just glancing through some of those posts now is somewhere between amusing and embarrassing, if not because of my underdeveloped writing then certainly for my taste in personal amusement. Those favorite “things” were fleeting — deservedly so.
Conversely, once you pick a favorite part of a given day, that’s it: it is permanently locked in as the thing you most enjoyed experiencing on that particular rotation of the planet. Here are some of the things I made my favorite in November, which I chose at random because it seemed not so long ago I couldn’t remember the context:
- A silly moment with two of the boys and one of the kids’ choir directors at church.
- A visit to see dinosaur skeletons at the museum in Chicago.
- Laughing with my oldest in the car after explaining Black Friday does not ever fall on a Saturday.
- An afternoon walk on an unseasonably warm day.
I might eventually have another museum trip that’s also the favorite part of that day, or we could go back to the same museum but it won’t be that day’s highlight. I drive alone with the oldest kid at least once a week, often more. Those short trips can be pretty enjoyable, but I think it means a little bit extra if I take the time, when it’s true, to say, “Hey, you know earlier in the car, when it was just you and me? That was my favorite part of the day. So thanks for that.”
Again, I’m not doing anything revolutionary here. Asking someone what they most enjoyed in the time since they woke up is not especially complex. Writing down a few tidbits about each day isn’t exactly a novel concept. And I don’t aim to define “favorite” for anyone else.
A thing can be enjoyed time and again — a song, a show, a food — but a moment is only there once; unique, fleeting. Some we wish would last forever, others can’t end quickly enough. When one such moment stands out, I like to make a note of it and tell the people involved they really made my day. It keeps life interesting, and it makes each day special, even if just a tiny bit. That’s all there is to it.