🍳 The Fried Egg That Taught Me Gratitude and Growth
There was a time when cooking a warm fried egg for lunch felt like a luxury.
I was renting a small room inside someone else’s house —
a guest in their space, not truly at home.
The kitchen?
Off-limits.
Every step into it felt like an intrusion 🚪
It was during lockdown too.
Options were limited —
cook inside a cramped room and live with the lingering smell,
walk outside in masks and heat,
or order food —
with prices marked up and delivery fees that weren’t exactly small 🥡
A simple, warm fried egg —
crispy edges, soft centre, fresh from the pan —
felt impossibly far away.
And so, I anchored a feeling right there:
The moment I can cook myself a fresh, warm fried egg,
that would be happiness to me.
That was my definition of happiness then.
Simple. Real. Enough.
🥚 Fried Eggs and Freedom
Time passed.
Circumstances evolved.
Today, cooking myself a proper meal — not just a fried egg — is effortless.
No kitchen restrictions.
No awkward silences.
No constraints.
Yet — the feeling of happiness every time I crack an egg into a pan still lives inside me.
Not from trauma.
Not from lack.
But from gratitude 💛
That fried egg never stopped being a symbol of freedom, self-respect, and care.
Even as my dreams grew bigger —
even as my external life improved —
that simple emotional imprint remains precious.
🌱 Gratitude and Growth Can Coexist
Sometimes, we fear outgrowing our old joys.
We think that if we want more, we betray the version of us who once had so little.
We confuse gratitude with limitation.
But here’s the truth:
Gratitude is the foundation.
Growth is the flowering 🌹
You can treasure the fried egg and still reach for healthier meals,
fuller dreams, bigger freedoms.
You don’t have to pick one.
You don’t have to feel guilty for growing.
Your past happiness isn’t abandoned —
it’s carried forward, expanded, honoured 🌷
🔥 Redefining Your Anchors
Hard times will come.
But you can shape the emotional meaning you carry from them.
When life feels stripped down to its bare bones,
choose to anchor your meaning to something simple,
something strong.
💡 Redefine what survival, hope, and joy look like — not through luxury, but through presence.
Create emotional references that don’t shatter easily.
They will steady you through storms you haven’t even met yet.
🌸 Your Turn
What small thing could you anchor happiness to today?
What simple experience reminds you that you’re already growing, already alive, already home?
Define it for yourself.
Plant it deep.
Let it grow with you — without guilt, without limit 🕊️
Because happiness isn’t what you chase.
It’s what you build, what you honour, and what you carry —
fried eggs and all 🍳🌿