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Happiness is…..

11th December 2008 by Helena 10 Comments  

Getting into bed last night with my laptop and my newly-purchased box-set of Sex and the City it occurred to me that happiness is all about little things. Like getting into bed at 9pm with over 100 episodes of Sex and the City and a green tea.

I have thoughts of some others which are listed below. Would love to hear yours.

Leo

Gazing at my son

Clean sheets

Going for a walk with my husband

Lying on Bea’s bed telling the girls a story I made up

A full decaf latte (Starbucks, natch)

The end of a curry when the sauce is all mixed up with the remaining rice

Sleeping through the night

A new lip gloss

Enjoying a good book

Watching the girls sing Carla Bruni songs and imagining them married to a future French president

Writing a good article

Knowing that Christmas will be over in a few weeks….OK, only joking (half).

Copyright: Helena Frith Powell 2008


Filed Under: Life, blog --> Tagged With: happiness

10 thoughts on Happiness is.....

  • Patricia Rodriguez says:
    11th December 2008 at 5:46 pm

    First of all…that kid of yours is absolutely adorable! And he looks just like you!

    And thank you for reminding us of the little things that matters Helena…especially during this time of the year when everybody seems to be so obsessed about shopping, shopping, shopping!

    Here’s my list:

    – My child’s laughter.
    – My husband telling me that I’m sexy even when I look like Marge Simpson!
    – A slice of cake
    – Listening to the rain
    – A bubble bath
    – A good book (preferably one of Helena’s) 😉
    – New shoes
    – Playing with a kitten

  • helena says:
    12th December 2008 at 5:06 am

    New shoes….how could I forget that?
    Hx

  • Kate says:
    12th December 2008 at 12:00 pm

    jasmine green tea, a piece of dark chocolate and 5 mins to flick through my favourite Sunday supplement

    the first glass of wine after the kids have gone to bed

    winter sun in Bahrain

    Radio 4, a quiet kitchen and trying out a new recipe

    the feeling of satisfaction after a good workout when I didn’t want to go in the first place

    my kids telling me they love me

  • Jules Ritter says:
    12th December 2008 at 12:07 pm

    Snow and the stillness it brings with it;
    A DVD box set of Damages (check that out HFP) or Brothers and Sisters Series 2;
    Singing along with the children in the car (when they let me);
    Getting the words right to pop songs (rare and reason for above);
    In the kitchen Saturday nights, the whole family watching The X Factor;
    Tea in bed on a Sunday morning and a newspaper to read;
    Walking in a rain-drenched forest with my youngest daughter and our old dog Molly;
    Making my husband chuckle;
    When my daughter comes home from school and shouts “Oh my God Mum Guess what happened?” (Almost daily);
    The rare moments the kid’s find me funny;
    Harveys Bristol Cream in the winter;
    Evesdropping on my daughters chatting late night;
    My son’s Rugby Team singing their Victory Song (always gives me goosebumps);
    The love of my girlfriends and the tears we share;
    My son kissing me on the top of my head;
    Parmesan, basil, walnut bread, red wine and Olive Oil the perfect meal;
    New Comments on my blog http://www.julesritter.com (!)

  • Jules Ritter says:
    12th December 2008 at 12:50 pm

    I forgot one! Airmiles that convert into upgrades!

  • Oliver says:
    12th December 2008 at 9:28 pm

    Helena talking about life in France.
    I miss it Helana.

  • sharyn g says:
    13th December 2008 at 6:14 am

    The feel of the fresh dirt on your fingers as you put the bedding plants in the soil in spring.

  • Ghinch says:
    13th December 2008 at 1:58 pm

    I wish everyone in the world could have a puppy dog so they’d feel just as happy as I feel right now.

    (Miss America contestant, 2006)

    Barf: http://www.ghinch.com

  • Jules Ritter says:
    15th December 2008 at 1:16 pm

    A friend like Graham to make you laugh and stop you going all smaltzy.

  • Irene says:
    7th January 2009 at 1:04 am

    Oh I so loved your list. Hubby offered to me the movie DVD for my birthday. Do you think he means anything by that?

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Helena Frith Powell was born in Sweden to a Swedish mother and Italian father, but grew up mainly in England. She is the author of eleven books, translated into several languages including Chinese and Russian. She wrote the French Mistress column The Sunday Times about life in France for several years. She is a regular contributor to the Daily Mail, Mail on Sunday, The Times, Daily Telegraph, Tatler Magazine and Harper’s Bazaar.

Helena has been the editor of four magazines, including M Magazine, a supplement for the Abu Dhabi-based National Newspaper and FIVE, a high-end fashion glossy, also published in Abu Dhabi. Helena was also editor-in-chief of 360 Life, a quarterly glossy magazine published with the Sports 360 Newspaper in Dubai, part of the Chalhoub Group.

Helena contributes regularly to UK-based newspapers and magazines and holds a Masters in Creative Writing from the University of Cambridge. She is working on a thriller set in Sweden as well as a novel about the relationship between Virginia Woolf and Katherine Mansfield called Sense of an Echo.

In 2022 her short story The Japanese Gardener came second in the Fish Publishing Short Story Prize. One of her stories was also shortlisted for the Bridport Short Story Prize. When she’s not writing, she works as a headhunter for the media and entertainment industry for the Sucherman Group. 

Helena, who was educated at Durham University, lives in the Languedoc region of France with her husband Rupert and their three children.

Bibliography

More France Please, we’re British; Gibson Square 2004

Two Lipsticks and a Lover 2005; Gibson Square (hardback)

All You Need to be Impossibly French; (US version of above) Penguin 2006

Two Lipsticks and a Lover; Arrow Books (paperback) 2007

Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (hardback) 2006

Ciao Bella Gibson Square; (paperback) 2007

So Chic! (French version of Two Lipsticks) Leduc Editions 2008 (also translated into Chinese, Russian and Thai)

More, More France; Gibson Square 2009

To Hell in High Heels; Arrow Books 2009 (also translated into Polish)

The Viva Mayr Diet; Harper Collins 2009

Love in a Warm Climate; Gibson Square 2011

The Ex-Factor; Gibson Square 2013

Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles; Gibson Square 2016

The Arnolfini Marriage; Amazon Kindle December 2016

Smart Women Don’t Get Wrinkles (paperback); Gibson Square spring 2018

The Longest Night; Gibson Square spring 2019

 

 

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