I struggled to find the right adjective for life. Successful, rewarding, and happy are a few of the better ones that came to mind, but even these are inadequate. Life is just too big. Big. That’s the adjective I was looking for.

I discovered after I had been married several years that my life wasn’t big, it was just busy.

You used to smile whenever you saw me, my wife, Christina, reminded me. That made me feel special. But you don’t smile when you see me anymore, and I miss that.

My love for Christina had grown, and she still turned heads, especially mine, so I had lots of reasons to smile. But she was right. I didn’t smile as often as I used to, because I was usually thinking about my to-do list. I appreciated her gentle reminder. I made a few changes and started smiling again. We’re both happier now.

In this little guide I share what I’ve learned about life, in the form of gentle reminders. You probably already know how to live a big life. If so, you don’t need a big book. But perhaps some reminders would help you too.

There are extra pages in the back you can use to add reminders for yourself or, if this book is a gift for someone, to share thoughts that have been meaningful to you over the years.

Gentle Reminder #1: Smile when you see your spouse.