I’ve been thinking a lot about happiness lately. What makes us happy? What makes us sad? How can we change sad to happy? So many questions.
Here’s what I’ve come up with for me, personally:
1. No one else can make me happy. No one else is responsible for my happiness. I have to find that myself.
2. There are things that can help make me happy. I’ve realized that being more fit has definitely elevated my mood, but it also seems to help long-term, too.
3. There are some things I can’t change. I can choose how I deal with them.
4. Bad things happen to good people. I have to accept that fact and move on. My husband has had many health problems. Some of them are very serious. I’ve had a few of my own. Sometimes it feels like we can’t take one more thing going wrong. We both choose not to dwell on it and to live life as well as possible.
5. There are people who are much worse off than me. There was a lady who had been bed-ridden for a few years. My husband used to visit her nearly every week. She was very sick and could do almost nothing. But my husband loved visiting her and loved her attitude. She always said there were people worse off than she was. She passed away recently, and the world lost a shining light.
6. Death is a part of life. It’s sad when I lose someone I love. But it’s a cycle that’s been going on since day one of the world. I choose not to dwell on it.
7. This may not pertain to everyone who is reading this, but I pray. I read the Bible. I try to focus on spiritual things as much as I can. I have a very loving and supportive church family. But, again, although sometimes I might need their support, it’s ultimately up to me to be happy.
I know many of you are depressed or lonely. So many of you have troubles that are probably worse than mine. And I know it’s hard to stay positive when you feel like your world is crashing down around you. But if you can reach inside you and find that little bit of happiness, that small kernel of hope, maybe things will look better. Life is a cycle, and it goes on.
Love and good wishes to you all!
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