A nice life is that little something extra.

It's I experienced joy and pleasure, and I made those things for myself.

I had agency and I made choices that allowed me to feel that little bit of sparkle,

that little bit of like twinkle in your eye,

that spring in your step, a little mischief.

You're listening to Life Kit. I'm Mariel Segarra.

We did a live taping recently at WBUR Fest, a festival hosted by Boston NPR station WBUR.

Fun fact, also where I started out as a public radio intern.

The topic was How to Have a Nice Life.

And our guest was Rachel Wilkerson Miller, who's a senior editor at Vox,

and has a book coming out called The Nice Life, How to Elevate the Every Day and Find Joy in What You Have.

Yeah, I think there's a bit of elegance in a nice life. But again, not when we say elegance,

I think we often would think of spending a lot of money, but we've talked about this.

Can you buy your way to a nice life? Absolutely not. And that to me is central. I say in the book, it's about punching above your weight without living above your means. It's about finding ways to elevate, to bring a little something extra that often doesn't cost money. Like it could be a meaningful conversation with a friend or a neighbor. It could be something you thrifted or got at

a garage sale or found in the garbage that brings you a lot of joy. It could be something that

you make yourself and use very inexpensive materials or, again, something you found in the recycling

bin. I think people sort of know those things when they see them, but so much of it goes back to

creativity, art, and connection with other people.

On this episode of Life Kit, you'll hear that conversation.

We talk about art and beauty, curiosity, falcons, Ulysses S. Grant, and much more.

In the book, you lay out qualities to pursue if you are trying to cultivate a nice life.

And one of those is beauty.

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