I’m curious to know what some of your favourite things are? But also, why are they your favourite things?
For example, why is your favourite colour blue? Or why is your favourite band, say, the Beatles? Why is your favourite food strawberry ice cream?
Is it just because, or is there a deeper meaning behind those things?
I started thinking about this because my eldest son’s favourite animal is, well, something rather wonderfully odd.
This summer, we took him to a place in Hong Kong called Ocean Park. It’s a theme park filled with all sorts of animal exhibits and aquariums. The main aquarium is spectacular. Filled with giant manta rays, sharks, octopuses, walruses, seals, and other giant fishy things.
But my son wasn’t interested in any of those. He only had eyes for one animal. And he searched for them inside every single tank.
Never mind the sharks and giant manta rays. Forget the massive walrus and the seals. The whole time he kept asking, “Daddy, where are the starfish?”
He absolutely loves them. We’ve been back several times and he’s always so excited to see them. And if you ask what his favourite animal is, that’s what he’ll tell you.
And, well, why not? I mean, an animal that is shaped like a star is pretty cool. I never really thought about it before.
My wife and I were a little perplexed at this strange fascination, to begin with, but after giving it some thought, I believe there’s a deeper connection.
He has a love for outer space. He can name all the planets and tell you some strange facts about them, like Venus is the hottest planet even though Mercury is closer to the sun.
I believe this stemmed from when we took him outside to look at the night-sky during the Full Moon festival here, when he was just 2 years old.
That evening the moon was spectacular. I recall him looking upward with such awe. It even frightened him. I remember holding him while he buried his eyes in my shoulder, occasionally peeking up to look at it before covering his eyes again.
I explained that the moon is our friend – always looking down on us. Sometimes we can only see part of it, sometimes we can’t see the moon at all, but it’s always there keeping watch while the sun attends to the other side of the earth.
Since that day, his fascination with the moon and space expanded. We read him lots of books on the topic. He loves looking up at the stars. He always asks where the moon and the planets are. For Halloween this year, he dressed up as an astronaut.
Now, I could be wrong. Maybe my son simply loves starfishes. But, I believe it has a lot to do with his love of the moon and all things space-related.
When I think about some of my favourite things, I realise there’s usually a deeper meaning hidden behind them. It’s just, I often forget it. My favourite colour is blue. When I think about why that is, I realise it’s because I have light blue eyes. As a kid, my parents used to tell me how beautiful they were. Weirdly enough I love drawing eyes too.
My favourite animal is the cheetah. I remember seeing it vividly as a kid on safari in South Africa. It was the first animal we saw on that trip. Within 5 minutes of driving into the reserve, we spotted this majestic cat. It was feasting on an Impala. I remember our guide explaining that it was the fastest land animal on earth. I just thought it was the coolest cat on the planet.
I still do.
There were lots of other memories from that trip. We followed a pack of lions as they hunted and killed a mongoose one evening. Our guide surprised us with a treehouse brunch overlooking the reserve on the last day. My family and I agree it’s our favourite holiday we ever did together.
I believe both my love of animals and travelling (another one of my favourite things) has a lot to do with that vacation.
I bring it up because it’s fast approaching my favourite time of year. And I thought, if you’re struggling to think about what to get your loved ones for Christmas this year, perhaps, instead of thinking about what they like, maybe it’s worth thinking about why they love the things they do?
It might just give you the inspiration you’re looking for. If nothing else, reminding yourself of the deeper meaning behind the things you love might just bring out the wonderfully unique, quirky child in you too.
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You can find AP2’s personal blog here at: https://clear-air-turbulence.com
You can also find him on Medium at: https://anxiouspilot2.medium.com
Or on Twitter at: @AnxiousPilot
Another wonderful article, AP2. Thank you for sharing with us!
P.S. One of my favourite things was/is motorcycling. From a very young age, I was interested in riding on two wheels. Why do I love it? I think it’s the freedom, of “sailing” over the land.
Cheers Art! Motorcycling! It’s always interested me but I’ve never taken it up. I did a motorcycling tour in central Vietnam once. That was amazing. I think that feeling of connection to the outside world you don’t get inside a car is what I loved most. I must think about getting a license one day. Take it easy Art. Ride safe. 🙏
I like you told your son that the moon is our friend!
He loves the moon. If I ask what his favourite planet is – even when I try to explain to him that the moon isn’t a planet – that’s what he says.
A favorite thing for me is a warm mug of coffee, no matter what season. It’s soothing and relaxing–a form of self-care. On the other hand, there are some things I like and don’t care why, like the color blue. Why am I drawn to blue? I don’t know. Maybe there’s a underlying reason, but when it comes to blue, I just like it because I do, and I go with it. Thanks for a great post!
I do love a cup of Joe. Yeah, I wonder if there are somethings we just like, just because. Perhaps the connections we make comes afterward – like believing I like the blue because it’s the colour of my eyes. Perhaps I just love the colour blue? Thanks for taking the time to read and comment. 🙏
My favourite colour is blue too! For years, I thought it evolved from the pride I felt (and still do) in being a part of Cetus (name for the blue house) in my school. But it could also be because I love swimming and enjoying on the beach, or that I associate blue with peace (I am not fond of conflict) or that it is just a soothing colour.
Your son may be destined to be an astronaut, or someone that helps send other people to outer space.
I would love to travel into space. I think our future might be out there somewhere. Who knows. I’ll support whatever cause he decides to champion.
Some of my favorite things are (1) watching a movie where the season is Winter and the homes are barely lit – as I peep through the windows (virtually) I can see families enjoying one another by the fire.
I love watching movies during Christmas – we always used to watch a Christmas movie at the end of Christmas Day in our household – usually it was a DVD we had been gifted. Thanks for sharing. 🙏
This certainly made me think! My favorite color is blue and my eyes are the color of the North Sea/Baltic. Dark grey blue. When I was young my mum took me to see the penguins at Edinburgh zoo. All I wanted for Xmas was a penguin and my mum searched Scotland for a toy penguin. Eventually she found me a wind up penguin on skis – my favorite toy ever! 🐧
I love that story! Penguins are awesome. Thank you for sharing 🙏
De nada!
One of my favorite things is stuffed animals. How sad is that?
We like what we like whether there’s a connection there or not. I’m sure many of the things I like are considered sad by others. For example, I love maps. I love looking at them. I can map out most places I’ve been to in my head. I can recall how to find a place in a city or town we have’t visited in years. My wife thinks it’s odd. Unlike her I usually forget people’s names with embarrassing ease.
Stuffies are awesome! We have a lot in our house and it’s amazing how soft and comforting they are. I think there’s a long tradition of stuff animals as treasured things!
I love this post, AP2! Such interesting stories and a push to make us think deeper as to why. I love the passion your son has for space!
I think it’s interesting that we pick favorite things – sometimes it’s a natural affinity for things and sometimes it’s just a way of making ourselves unique.
When I first read the title of your post I was thinking of favorite things as in what I would narrow down if I just had to grab things and run. I picked my meditation book (because it always delivers me to a better place) and my tea mug that says LOVE on it (because my daughter gave it to me and it reminds me of all we have together).
Opening myself up to the biggest definition you draw out here – I’d have to say dogs. Because they make me laugh and love.
Great post! Thank you so much for this beautiful experience of sorting through favorites! Best to you!
Thank you Wynne. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I’m very much a dog person myself. I always wanted one as a child but my dad never got us one. I told my wife I want 3 when the kids are a little older! 🤣 Best to you too! 🙏
No real answer to that but my favourite… changes quite frequently.
It’s good to change things up. Sometimes what I like is very mood dependent. Thanks for sharing 🙏
I love this post! 😍
I always said that my favourite season is spring. It’s because after a long and cold winter, everything would come back to life, I would have more energy to do things, the sound of birds, longer days…This year I realised that I think I enjoy autumn a bit more. You can stay at home, read a book, it gives this city feeling. I guess I’m getting older 😂
I guess we all change with the seasons of life! I love the autumn too. Thank you for your kind words/for sharing joannaesl. Wishing you a wonderful Christmas 🙏
Thank you for this wonderful post! I don’t think I’ve ever thought about why I like certain things. Such a simple question with quite a complex answer 😊 Merry Christmas ❄
😁 😁… My favourite season is spring as one of my favourite festivals, Holi, is celebrated in Spring. Though I live in a coastal city where one can’t distinguish between summer and winter very well, I find spring to be a welcome break from the cold winters. Spring to me also means the end of one academic year and beginning of another.
Great post! I feel that we like some of our favourite things because they match our personality in some way. For instance, though I am an introvert, my favourite animal is a dog because of its loyal, forgiving nature and tendency to love unconditionally. Often, our favourite things make us feel comforted, happy, peaceful etc, like how yellow colour makes some people happy (not me though) and blue makes others feel calm. Or they could be connected to old memories, like you have mentioned in your post.
It’s interesting isn’t it. It could be that we build the meaning into our favourite things afterwards. I was thinking that maybe those stories – although true – are just clever ways my mind has connected the dots. Perhaps I just have a natural infinity to the colour blue for example. The meaning – the story I attribute it to – came after. It makes me wonder if what I say is correct. I suspect in some cases it must be, but not all. Thanks for sharing. I’m pleased you enjoyed the post 🙏
AP, I am a very visual person and adore bright colors. My favorite color is red, the color of flowers and fire and the symbol of love, passion, and loyalty. But I also love the greens and blues of sky and water, a soothing connection to the beauty and wonder of the natural world.
I love my fellow human beings, especially my family and Robert in particular. I enjoy interactions on WordPress. Life without other people would be very lonely.
I love ideas and knowledge. Learning and creating make me feel alive.
I found it very inspiring that you share meaningful family adventures and encourage your daughter to develop her own interests. When my son was about eight, we bought him a telescope for the holidays. He used to climb up on the roof with it and look at the stars.
Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas! <3
Merry Christmas Cheryl! Thank you for sharing. A telescope sounds like a brilliant present! I shall keep it mind. Thank you 🙂🙏
*I meant to say your son, not daughter. Sorry.
No worries Cheryl! Easy mistake to make. Wishing you well 🙏