I am letting go of playing favorites.
Favorite movies. My favorite movie for the longest time has been The Lord the Rings (I consider it one film). A close runner-up would have to be Fight Club (probably my first introduction to the concept of minimalism). However, there are so many other great movies out there. As much as I love LOTR and Fight Club, by singling them out as my favorite films I am denying all of the other great films out there. So now when I watch Fight Club, I am fully absorbed with it. When I watch Days of Heaven, I am fully absorbed with it. When I watch La Strada, I am fully absorbed with it.
Favorite books. I have gone through a long list of favorite books. When I was a kid, I loved the Animorphs series of books. They were easily my favorite, with Goosebumps being a close runner-up. Then I turned to The Lord of the Rings in middle school. Orwell's 1984 took it over in high school, and Stephen King's Dark Tower series came soon after. When people ask, I usually respond with the Dark Tower novels being my favorite, but there are so many great novels out there! Instead, I should be present with the book I am currently reading instead of thinking about how great my favorite is. While reading Infinite Jest, I am fully absorbed with it. When I read The Gunslinger, I am fully absorbed with it. When I read the Tao Te Ching, I am fully absorbed with it.
Favorite music. I have many musical artists that I consider to be favorites. They cycle in and out of my top ten favorites, but Avenged Sevenfold has always been at the top (I even have tattoos based on their artwork). But sometimes I am enjoying other artists music more than A7X. Sometimes I like Dir En Grey more, or sometimes I am more in the mood for Radiohead, or Naked City, or Brian Eno. So instead of just settling on who my top ten favorite bands are at the time, I will just be present with the music I am listening to at the moment, whatever it may be. When I listen to System of a Down, I am fully absorbed with it. When I listen to Mozart, I am fully absorbed with it. When I listen to Miles Davis, I am fully absorbed with it.
What will I do instead? Rather than make a hierarchy of the best musicians or novels or films, I will just be present with whatever art or entertainment I am presently enjoying. Enjoy the things that are with me now. Be content with what I do have.
This concept can transfer over into other facets of my life too. Rather than compare this moment or this day to previous ones and think it's not as good, I can be content with the present. I can be accept what I have now and dismiss the labels of good or bad. Be content what it is instead of what I think it should be.