Happiness and Joy

Childhood is that state which ends
the moment a puddle is first viewed
as an obstacle instead of an opportunity.
--K.Williams (5/5/95)

Happiness is a mental habit, a mental attitude, and if it is not learned and practiced in the present
it is never experienced.

-- Maxwell Maltz

Life is not always what one wants it to be, but to make the best of it as it is, is the only way of being happy.

-- Jennie Jerome Churchill

"The soul would have no rainbow if the eyes had no tears."

-Minquass Proverb-

Take time every day to do something silly.

-- Philipa Walker

Happiness is not a place to travel to. It's a way of getting there.
--Anonymous

Those of us who climb mountains find joy in reaching the top. However, the climb would not make much sense if there were not things to enjoy on the way up. If we groan and complain, it will be hard to feel joy at the summit. However, if we are able to enjoy each day's journey, it makes all the difference in the world. In the midst of each chore, we can notice the sunset or the unique and beautiful surroundings of each day.

Each of our days is different. Happiness is not a goal we are struggling to reach some time in the future. It is a gift we can give ourselves today. If we enjoy some parts of each day of our hike, we will also feel joy at the summit.

What form will my gift of happiness take today?

© 1996 Hazelden Foundation

"I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, it's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, and that enables you to laugh at life's realities."

-Dr. Seuss-

"We do not stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing."

-Unknown-

"To laugh often and much; to win respect of intelligent people and the affection of children...to leave the world a better place...to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson-

"When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us."

-Helen Keller-

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The only thing worth having in an earthy existence is a sense of humor.

Lincoln Steffens

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No Man is happy unless
he believes he is.

Publibius Syrus, 50 BC

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"What we are today comes from thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow: our life is the creation of our mind."
Buddha

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Happiness is a man's greatest achievement; it is the response of his total personality to a productive orientation toward himself and the world outside.

Eric Fromm

One comes in the end to realize that there is no permanent pure relationship and there should not be.
-- Anne Morrow Lindbergh

Whether we are teenagers in love for the first time, or parents who have been married for twenty years, relationships can turn into obsessions if we're not careful. We can lose our sense of self and only feel complete when we're with the other person. We can become totally attached and dependent on the primary person in our lives for all our needs.

We need to remember that we can be a good partner in a relationship only if we feel complete within ourselves. Keeping ourselves open to change in our surroundings, our loved ones, and especially ourselves helps us stay whole.

We learn, first, to be ourselves, to make independent choices. We dare to do things on our own. Things as simple as going for a walk by ourselves and smelling the scents of nature. Being ourselves means bringing our own world to meet the world of our loved ones, rather than depending on them to make our world.

Ask yourself this:
Am I making my own happiness so I may share it with others?

Bill Farmer writes in his newspaper column about J. Upton Dickson, a fun-loving person who announced he was writing a book entitled "Cower Power". He also was forming a group for insecure, submissive people called the "Doormats". It's an acronym for Dependent Order of Really Meek and Timid Souls. Their motto was: "The meek shall inherit the earth - if that's okay with everybody." The national symbol was the yellow traffic light.

We must never forget that we may also find meaning in life even when confronted with a hopeless situation, when facing a fate that cannot be changed. For what then matters is to bear witness to the uniquely human potential at its best, which is to transform a personal tragedy into a triumph, to turn one's predicament into a human achievement.

Victor Frankl

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Remember to Be Happy

The sign hangs on the wall of a bagel shop: "Don't forget to be happy." Sometimes we get so bogged down in dealing with feelings, issues, problems --- the realities and details of our lives --- we forget to be happy. Often happiness can be ours if we just remember to be happy. Joy is a choice --- a deliberate, conscious choice. That choice is available to us each day. Our joy isn't controlled by others or by outward circumstances. Joy comes from a deeper place, a place of security within ourselves. It's an attitude, not a transitory emotion.

Remember to be kind. Remember to be loving. Remember to feel all your feelings and to take care of yourself. But most of all, remember to be Happy.

"Journey to the Heart" by Melody Beattie

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Embrace Life's Mystery

Embrace the mystery of life. You don't need to know everything in your head. You don't need to figure everything out. You don't need an instruction sheet or a set of rules. You don't need all the answers. Let yourself experience life. Hang on to the handlebars when you must, but as much as possible put your hands in the air and enjoy the ride. Feel everything you need to feel along the way. Feel the fear, the joy, the exhilaration. Feel the wind in your hair and the sun on your shoulders. Feel the vitality of life surge through you. See vitality and life in all that's around you. Watch the magical journey of your life unfold with all it's ups and downs. Feel the awareness surge up from deep within. Grasp the insights that come. Grab the brass ring whenever you can.

Embrace the mystery in life. Embrace the mystery and magic of you.

"Journey to the Heart" by Melody Beattie

A professor who had taught for many years was counseling a young teacher. "You will discover," he said, "that in nearly every class, there will be a youngster eager to argue. Your first impulse will be to silence him, but I advise you to think carefully before doing so. He is very probably the only one listening.

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IF I HAD MY LIFE TO LIVE OVER

If I had my life to live over again, I'd try to make more mistakes next time. I would relax. I would limber up. I would be sillier than I have been this trip. I know of a very few things I would take seriously. I would take more trips. I would climb more mountains, swim more rivers and watch more sunsets. I would do more walking and looking. I would eat more ice cream and fewer beans. I would have more actual troubles and fewer imaginary ones. You see, I am one of those people who lives prophylactically* and sensibly and sanely hour after hour, day after day. Oh, I've had my moments; and if I had it to do over again, I'd have more of them. In fact, I'd try to have nothing else. Just moments, one after another, instead of living so many years ahead each day. I have been one of those people who never go anywhere without a thermometer, a hot water bottle, a gargle, a raincoat, aspirin and a parachute. If I had it to do over again, I would go places, do things and travel lighter than I have. If I had my life to live over, I would ride on more merry-go-rounds --- pick more daisies.

Brother Jeremiah

*prophylactically - tending to prevent misfortune