Undeniable happiness.

Munich. Oktoberfest 2013

The night this photo was taken was one of utter and complete happiness. I feel joy so often, daily, but this happiness, this happiness was accompanied by no underlying anxieties or jumbled thoughts rolling around in my head like a bunch of marbles in the background. It was one of the rare moments in my life where I felt I was where I belonged.

Midway through the tent's brass band rendition of "Bohemian Rhapsody," --singing along at the top of our lungs, swaying back and forth with arms locked together--I could feel happiness that reached deep into my bones.

"This," I thought, "is a happiness I will always remember. This is a moment that will change everything."

And it did. It truly did.

So stumbling upon this photo last week on Facebook brought it all back.

But most of all, it immediately made me think of this post from the ever-so-enlightening Laura at Little Things and Curiosities...

"And then her heart changed, or at least she understood it; and the winter passed, and the sun shone upon her." -J. R. R. Tolkien