What do you live for?

[MTL]

First of all, it sounds so cheesy, but you really learn to appreciate what you DO have, in life.

I appreciate when things are NOT bad.

I appreciate peace and quiet, instead of strife.
I appreciate days of no wind or rain, when it ISN'T sweltering or freezing outside.

I appreciate when I DON'T have a cold.
I appreciate when I DON'T have a canchre sore in my mouth.

I appreciate NOT being hospitalized.

I appreciate when there ISN'T something broken in my house,
when the hot water heater, and AC, and WiFi are all working, with no problems;
when there ISN'T a flooded basement or a clogged drain or a power outage.

It sounds like I'm setting the bar pretty low,
but to me, it is a hallmark of immaturity to fail to appreciate that things could always be worse,
because any one of those things will make you miserable,
....and there are far worse things, than these, obviously.

Having none of those things to deal with immediately makes me appreciate my day, more.

And I know the OP said, no pizza or cookies or waffles,
but truly, the next thing I appreciate, are the small pleasures.

I love trying new recipes, especially for really enticing sandwiches, paninis or wraps.

I love my garden.

I love watching the birds.  Animals always remind you to live in the moment.

And I love learning.  I love getting stuck in a Wikipedia loop.
I especially love researching by city....learning a city's skyline, major landmarks, history, demographics, political leaning, median age, major industries, noteworthy citizens, waterways, highways, disasters, media, sports teams.
I find researching by city is a very interesting way to learn history.

And I think creativity is important.
Not necessarily just in a professional or disciplined sense, like being a musician, but just taking on obscure projects.

Finally, accomplishing, overcoming things, in and of itself, gives a sense of purpose.

I do sympathize with Dr. Fuzzy, on page 1 of this thread,
because when you love your family more than anything
it can easily make you suicidal and question your reason for living
when they don't seem to value you, at all.

I've been through that.  It is one of the biggest challenges, for someone who puts their family first.

It really pushed me to the brink and made me learn to live for myself.

EDIT:  I wanted to add that I am SO GLAD that I managed to figure out the whole God/Religion thing.
I am so glad I freed myself from the absurdity and horror of religion.

That alone is something to appreciate.