Whenever one of the rangers at the park hosting the Champion (my tiny-home-in-a-converted-bus) is asked how he’s doing, he replies, “as long as I’m above ground, it’s a good day.”
Well. OK, and. As much as we might appreciate that sentiment, can’t we raise the bar a little higher?
Years ago when I experimented with an online dating site, my byline was “I wake up happy.”
When I realized this Waking Up Happy thing was occuring, I was pleasantly surprised. Yet I didn’t take it for granted, because I suffer from chronic low-level depression. This whole happiness thing is something I need to actively tend to, not take for granted.
Loving life can be our “automatic” setting.
To kick-start the concept we can use a little trick I learned many years ago. I call it a Happiness List – an inventory of things or actions that, added up, lean us towards happy.
For example, here’s a peek at part of my list:
- Reaching out to friends
- Being surrounded by greenery + wildlife
- Enough quiet time to read (or journal, or write)
- Hugs! More hugs!
- Home cooked meals
- Exercise! More exercise!
- Artwork (mine or someone else’s)
- Music (listening or practicing my harp)
I could go on – I think you get the picture. Isn’t it interesting that nothing on my Happiness List involves money, material goods, or electronic devices?
Hmmmmmmmm.
What’s on your Happiness List? Wanna share?
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