Are you happy? Do you want to be?

Loaded questions, right?

Maybe

I decided a long time ago, like 10 minutes ago, to be happy. I also decided 5 minutes ago to be happy. Then, 1 minute ago, I decided to be happy, again. See what I just did, there?

Deciding to be happy is a choice people can make. It sounds unrealistic, yet, what does a person have to gain from wallowing in anxiety, misery, negativity, grudge holding? The answer is, they don't gain anything, yet, they most definitely reap the countermeasure reward.

When I decided this, to be happy, I started noticing that people are trained from an early age to think in negativity. Have worked on myself to think, speak, act, in positives. Since I went along with the crowd in the negativity for so long, I still find myself having to self correct.

Pick up a magazine, a newspaper, open any online news feed, you will see it. The wording is mostly in negatives. Children are trained from an early age in negativity.

"Don't touch that!"
"You can't have that"
"There is no Santa Claus"
"If you don't clean your room..."
"We can't afford that so you can't have it"
"You're not going to go to that party tomorrow"

Dr. James Dobson first drew my attention to this, thankfully, while my kiddos were still in their formative years. I'm grateful for his good advice.

It began like this, speaking to my kiddos in positives instead of negatives, it made a huge difference.

N for negative
P for the way I corrected it to positive.

N - Time to get out of the pool, we have to go home
P - It's time to have popsicles!
(they knew they had to leave the pool if they wanted popsicles & they knew the popsicles were at home!)

N - Don't touch that! (as in, going through a store with many breakables in Kaiserslautern,Germany)
P - Fold your arms, touch with your eyes.

N - There were 6 in the family and 7 days when dishes needed to be washed.
P - We also had a dog, Sammy, who was very loved. The 7th day, it was Sammy's turn to do the dishes. We all loved Sammy & wanted to help him by doing the dishes together when it was his turn. Most family members did dishes together on that day. Some opted out, yet, it didn't matter. As long as the dishes were done, that was the whole enchilada. :)


At times, I did slip slightly into negative talk at times, yet, I'm human, we all are. Giving it your best effort is really what matters.

People who know me, know the tragedy which has occurred  in my life, remark at how positive I am.

Well....thank you. Thank you very much! (channeling Elvis, ha ha!)

To one degree or another, everyone has hills & valleys in life. Sometimes, they feel like they are in an abyss and then, later, are flying high! Wait.....that's a mental/emotional disorder. Hmm.

So, scratch that. Am sure you get the gist.

Part of being human is to have highs, lows, tragedy, triumph, joy, pain.

Staying in the positive I will only say that & leave it. When we re-tell a tragic event in our lives over and over, we are giving the negativity power. We all do it to some extent. Yet, we can minimize the negative, like blowing out a lit match vs putting out a house fire.
See what I just did? *smile*

Deepak Chopra is an East Indian philosopher who I listen to a lot. His words make so much sense. Bringing order to chaos, his fresh perspectives are very interesting. At night, when I lay in my bed, feeling the luxuriousness of  my soft sheets against my skin, the warmth of the electric blanket & heated mattress pad, lulling me into slumber, I think back to when I first woke that morning of that day. I recall every positive event of the day, then let the happiness of that feeling come to me again. Saying thank you, that was lovely! To each event I recall.
This practice, alone, makes a big difference in the amount of happiness felt.

When I see a bird on the fence outside my home, closer than usual and singing! Enjoyment of that which is so simple yet less common, it makes me happy.

Yup, ha ha. I am pretty easy to please.

So, these little things that activate the happy feelings can make up as well as counteract whatever negativity may fall upon my day. Negativity is part of life, yet, so is positivism!

While my creative juices have been flowing,  I have neglected my house cleaning. Have to admit that, the disorder has started to get to me, so, today, I decided that after my workout, after running errands, after my daily activities are done, I will give myself 2 hours to clean. With a time limit, it's easier for me, it just works.

Setting my world right? Maybe. :)

Some helpful words, from Dr. Chopra, that have helped me, are the following:

Are you feeling depressed? Hopeless? Sad? Lonely? Alone?

Go home
Make your bed
Dust your furniture
Clean your kitchen
Sweep and mop your floors

Do you feel better?

Good!

Do 2 loads of laundry, start to finish. Wash, dry, iron if needed, then fold, if needed, put them away in the dresser or the closet or wherever you would store them if company is expected.

Clean your home as if you are expecting some very important people to come over. Really, you are cleaning for that one VIP that this will make an impact upon - yourself!

It's amazing at how having a clean home can make the feeling of happiness bubble up for you.

I know, I have more reasons to be sad & depressed than I do reasons to be happy. This is realistic, to acknowledge the truth, while choosing to be happy. This is the mechanics of it.

I choose, this day, to be happy.

You can choose, too.

Choose happiness. Happy, positive thoughts, positive events.

You will see how this positivism changes your life!

Aloha!