Everything was going a little too good. The airport lounge access, my incredibly enjoyable time in Melbourne, then Bali with the daily massages, the astoundingly friendly people, the mind blowing exchange rate working in my favor - and then the Hilton in Sri Lanka contacting me with 'Surprise, we upgraded you to an Executive King'. I was tempted to believe I had died and gone to heaven....
But no...the universe intervened. My flight from Bali to Kuala Lumpur was late so Malaysia Airlines booked me on a later flight from KL to Sri Lanka - the airport lounges were inaccessible, then the connection was delayed two hours, then four - and I mean, let's face it - these are first world problems and I was treated with privilege. I was given access to the first class lounge, then I was given a hotel room to myself in the airport hotel - families of four had to share and most had to sleep in the gate area - where they presumably still are 12 hours later as I sit in a comfortable hotel room drinking coffee and contemplating having a free breakfast.
I'm so incredibly grateful (still) and while I'm a bit tired and bummed at missing out on that upgraded room - things are still going incredibly well. After all, they might not have discovered the problem with the airplane until we were midway over the Indian Ocean. We could have all been killed in a plane wreck. I mean, sure, we still could - but at least I got a few hours sleep in a nice bed first.
So, the reminder from the universe is a good one. The key to happiness is gratitude and the key to gratitude is wanting what you have. It's not always easy - especially when there are other things we think we want - but the reminder is a good one.