Sometimes, happiness sneaks up on you. And don't kid yourself, happiness is a spiritual quality. Happiness is being aware of yourself doing well in the midst of circumstances beyond your control. It's essentially noticing. As the hero says in Joe and the Volcano: "99% of people are asleep and the other 1% are amazed!"
I've used that quote before in my blogs but it always bears repeating. If we're on a spiritual journey, we want to be in that one percent, right? We want to be awake and amazed. That's happiness and beyond.
So, how do we become awake. The first answer is yada-yada always meditation. I'm not going to say that today. I think the first answer is conscious choice for your own well being. So often, we are on auto-pilot, zinging along and remembering our selves only when life catches us up short. For me, that usually means that something painful happens. Why is that? Well, I tend to doubt the good things coming my way, to wait for the other shoe to drop. Probably, I won't find myself in happiness while my eyes are on pending disasters.
All of this was brought home to me last week when I made a difficult, conscious choice not to act on an impulse. I literally had to slam my computer shut and go to bed in order to make the right and good choice in that moment. I did it. The next day, I found myself really happy. I talked with my son unexpectedly and with a lightness of being that surprised me. I noticed my happiness at Thanksgiving dinner. I caught myself trying to prolong it, trying to engage and participate. I realized that, for once, I wanted to be where I was instead of rushing off to my hotel room. The people around me seemed like blessings. Instead of draining me, they were filling me up.
I believe it was the conscious choice of the night before that paved the way for me to be awake and amazed at dinner that day. I confess that I have since been cringing occasionally as I slip back into waiting for the old shoe to come crashing down. But, I'm aware that it doesn't have to and even IF it does, I don't have to be crushed by it. I wouldn't say I'm exactly happy today but the groundwork is prepped, the bread is rising, and I'm waiting, not for the shoe to drop, but for happiness. Wait, is that it? Ahhhhh. Roxie
I've used that quote before in my blogs but it always bears repeating. If we're on a spiritual journey, we want to be in that one percent, right? We want to be awake and amazed. That's happiness and beyond.
So, how do we become awake. The first answer is yada-yada always meditation. I'm not going to say that today. I think the first answer is conscious choice for your own well being. So often, we are on auto-pilot, zinging along and remembering our selves only when life catches us up short. For me, that usually means that something painful happens. Why is that? Well, I tend to doubt the good things coming my way, to wait for the other shoe to drop. Probably, I won't find myself in happiness while my eyes are on pending disasters.
All of this was brought home to me last week when I made a difficult, conscious choice not to act on an impulse. I literally had to slam my computer shut and go to bed in order to make the right and good choice in that moment. I did it. The next day, I found myself really happy. I talked with my son unexpectedly and with a lightness of being that surprised me. I noticed my happiness at Thanksgiving dinner. I caught myself trying to prolong it, trying to engage and participate. I realized that, for once, I wanted to be where I was instead of rushing off to my hotel room. The people around me seemed like blessings. Instead of draining me, they were filling me up.
I believe it was the conscious choice of the night before that paved the way for me to be awake and amazed at dinner that day. I confess that I have since been cringing occasionally as I slip back into waiting for the old shoe to come crashing down. But, I'm aware that it doesn't have to and even IF it does, I don't have to be crushed by it. I wouldn't say I'm exactly happy today but the groundwork is prepped, the bread is rising, and I'm waiting, not for the shoe to drop, but for happiness. Wait, is that it? Ahhhhh. Roxie
Love this. Love your blog. Found it on an ad on facebook! Will definitely be following. (:
ReplyDeleteThank you! Welcome to my blog.
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