These days, whenever I need an instant pick-me-up, whenever I feel grim and want to regain my smile, I simply remind myself of all the mind-blowingly awesome things which have happened in my recent life. When I think about it, it is truly amazing: from watching Lyn play in the paralympic closing ceremony, to watching Monty python to meeting Patrick Stewart, simply remembering these events fills me with joy. It’s like an automatic boost to the system.

I was just pondering how that boost works, though, and it occurred to me that the memory is only half the story. The interconnected events which spur me do so because they go to show how great life can be; they reveal the potential of life. If awesome things can happen, they can happen again and again. Part of the reason behind my fascinations with both London and the Olympics stems from the fact that they are both cites of awesomeness – and how much cooler can you get than the queen parachuting out of a helicopter with james flipping bond? These memories fill me with joy; they allow me to say ‘I was there!’ But the also fill me with energy and an eagerness to go out into the city to look for more. Just as a glance at my graduation photo fills me with pride and confidence, rewatching this or this forces me to think about how great life can be; they are absolute demonstrations that, in this city, in this world, in this life, anything can happen. And if that is so, why not go out and see what does.