Looking for Happiness

Are you happy, or are you looking for happiness?

Do you think happiness is “just around the corner”? Or do you think you’ll finally be happy when (fill in the blanks where appropriate):

• I accomplish/reach ______________
• I have enough money to ______________
• Somebody finally recognizes the sacrifices I made for __________
• So & so gets out of my life
• So & so finally “gets” (understands) me
• I get that promotion
• So & so accepts me into their group/clique/team/inner circle
• So & so has ___________ and they are happy; maybe if I get ________ also, I will be happy.
• Etc.

How many of you are looking for happiness outside of self?

How many are making their happiness dependent on others?

How many blame their unhappiness on others?

These are common mistakes we – the human race – sometimes make…looking for happiness externally.

Happiness is not something we find elsewhere. Oh sure, the new car, job, shoes, etc. can give us a temporary feeling of happiness but it is an illusion; it is materialistic and temporary.

Happiness, and peace, comes from within. No one can hand it to you…it’s not “just around the corner”.

It is a state of mind.*

* (Possibly baring health/mental health issues.)

PMA

Doom & Gloom attitude creates a doom and gloom, misery-lade life.

Positive Mental Attitude (PMA) is when you work to find the positive in your life.

Life is not all rosy all the time; there are bumps on the road, hurdles to jump, tasks to master…but one can always find a positive in any situation.

What good came out of an incident? Be honest, and try to not keep marinating in misery…what silver lining was there? What had you learned?

I believe that by working PMA, it becomes a stepping stone to finding happiness within.

Other Stepping Stones

Other stepping stones may be:

• Finding at least one thing a day to be grateful for; a flower, a friend, a poem…
• Looking beyond self. Is there someone you could help (but don’t become a doormat)? Perhaps volunteering once a week at a soup kitchen, battered shelter, dog pound, or maybe sit and read for an elderly person, etc.

Looking for happiness within means you have to be an active participant in your search…within.

I wish you all happiness within.

by Jan Toomer