Happiness

"Happiness, not in some other place, but in this place - - - not for another hour, but for this hour." Walt Whitman

Happiness is choice -- unless we have a biochemical imbalance in our brains, and, then, thankfully, we have medication and other practices for that.  Let us choose to be happy.  The whole world benefits.  

Courage

"Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway." John Wayne

Others have said the same thing.  It is not so much to be brave, but to walk through our fears.  Fear is a natural human emotion.  Some say there really are just two emotions:  love and fear.  When afraid, we can do it anyway.  

Forgiving

"To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it." Confucius

Wow.  Big order, and yet, he is right.  We will all be wronged in life, and, unfortunately, we will probably also wrong someone else.  We are human and makes mistakes.  The important thing is to let it go, stop ruminating on it, do not take it personally.  Forgive.  It is a choice, and we do it for our own peace of mind and physical and mental health.

What The Day Brings

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant." Robert Louis Stevenson

Goals are good, but not as important as the journey.  Each day we affect our environments.  We are either a blessing -- or not.  We can decide to be a blessing in every situation.  

Being Content

"Remember, you don't have to be doing something 'constructive' to contribute -- the vibration of your contented energy is a blessing." Jane Beach

Were you raised knowing it was okay to just relax?  I think most of us were not.  There is often a sense that one must be 'doing something' in order to be contributing.  But, what if our major contribution is in our attitude of contentment -- whether or not we are actively producing?  

Being Masters of Our Minds

"The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a Heav'n of Hell, a Hell of Heav'n." Milton

How true.  It is not so much the circumstances as our reactions to the circumstances that make up the quality of our lives.  We can be in the same circumstances as someone else and for one it is positive, while for the other it is negative.  It is a matter of how we choose to perceive it. 

Spring

"Stop being who you were and change into being who you are." Paulo Coelho

Spring is a time of change, new growth.  Every day it seems the grass gets greener and more flowers are blooming.  It can also be a time for interior growth -- a time to have the courage to become fully who we are.

Finding The Quiet

"Now, when I hurt, I try to find my way through the tangle of my very normal reactions into the quiet underlying all experience." Mark Nepo

What good advice, and yet, how many people avoid the quiet.  Underneath all experience, to include the pain, is quiet.  That is where God resides.  So, today, let us become quiet and see what we learn from that experience.  

Earth Day

"Happy Day Mother Earth"

Today is Earth Day.  Let us enjoy this home we have and take action to make it even more beautiful.

Life Is Good

"Life is good." common saying

Life is good, although it is also rift with challenges.  Perhaps Joseph Campbell is correct when he said that one must just be okay with the challenges.  One tactic in dealing with challenges is to know they are not personal.  Everyone has challenges.  No one is the exception.

Courage to Stand Alone

"There will never be another you."  anonymous

It's true.  You are unique.  There will never be another person with the exact same physical, emotional and cognitive qualities.  You are here for a reason.  Let us have the courage to stand in our own uniqueness.  

Honoring the Process

"We delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through to achieve that beauty." Maya Angelou

To become the most beautiful human we can be, it requires going through changes.  Dropping beliefs that no longer serve us, facing into what we fear, learning to love more deeply, discerning what our passions are -- all of these and more must be encountered to develop our beauty.

Facing Fear

"The wise person in the storm prays to God, not for safety from danger, but for deliverance from fear."  Ralph Waldo Emerson

Fear is so disabling, and it is part of the human journey.  One way I knew my grief was more than grief and included depression was my irrational fears.  Almost immobilizing fears, especially about my granddaughter -- like the fear that she might fall off the chair lift skiing.  I knew it was irrational, but I could not stop the fearful thoughts.  The other way I knew I was dealing with depression was that I could not make myself exercise.  Exercise has always been a vital and enjoyable part of my life, and when fear takes over and exercise falls out, I knew I needed more help than my own toolkit provided.  Medication was the answer for me.  Within a week I felt dread departing and hope returning.  

Destiny

"Destiny is not a matter of chance; it's a matter of choice.  It is not a thing to be waited for; it is a thing to be achieved." William Jennings Bryan

What exactly does that mean?  I agree that destiny is choice.  One choice after another, but I have also found that sometimes waiting is called for.  It is similar, it seems, to pregnancy.  Sometimes we are called to wait upon circumstances.  The waiting may seem inactive, but actually much interior change can be occurring.  

Regaining Wonder

"How do I regain my wonder at being alive?" Mark Nepo

Following a death and the inevitable grieving and perhaps plunge into depression, how does one find the wonder in life again?  Sometimes it is with the help of medication.  It is interesting to me that society discourages medications for depression, but not for diabetes.  Both are legitimate illnesses and both respond well to medication.  For depression, it is also helpful to manage our thoughts so they are not negative, get exercise, eat and sleep well and, perhaps, be seeing a therapist.  

Self Confidence

"When your heart speaks, take good notes." Judith Campbell

The word confidence comes from a Latin word meaning fidelity.  So, confidence is fidelity to self.  When people boast, that is not confidence -- it is, instead, a cover up for inadequacy.  Confidence is quiet, strong, knowing our worth.  Let's support each others' confidence in self today.