Well hey. Glad you are here. This means you probably need a little boost in the happiness department? You are not alone there. All our lives have gone out of control this year. “What is next?” I keep thinking. But recently I had a thought. Why am I letting the current state of the world determine my happiness? Happiness starts with ME, and I have the control.
A friend of mine recently passed away from cancer. I was amazed at her attitude. She recognized that life is short and she had the power to savor every moment and immerse herself in the memories. She knew that her time was almost done on this earth, yet stayed one of the most happy people I know. She had every reason to be angry with the world, but she instead spread her love and her light to everyone although her life was taken shortly after. Her example made me pause and relook at my attitude.
COVID changed all our lives with a snap of a finger, but here we are right? Breathing, with a roof over our head? During this time I have really pondered and worked on some different techniques to help me feel whole, and I wanted to share those with you.
1. GET A DIGITAL WATCH: I am serious. This has changed my life. Social media is LOUD. WAY too loud!!! Get a watch! I work a few jobs from home and always need to know the time, and the date. Instead of looking directly at my phone to check the time or the calendar, I check my watch. It gives me one less moment that I am checking my phone. Chances are I get sucked into my phone for another meaning less time sucking scroll when I just wanted to see how many more minutes there was until my kiddos bed time. Haha.
2. FEED YOURSELF SPIRITUALLY: This can mean a variety of things. I love to study the scriptures. There are so many ways to connect to your spiritual side! Sit outside, yoga, pray, meditation, journal writing, etc…. The biggest part of this is SILENCE. Turn off the world for one moment and listen to your soul. Recharge.
3. SPEND TIME GROWING: Pick up a musical instrument, write a story, grow a garden, paint a picture, read a book, etc…. Invest your time in the things that REALLY matter. Things you can work at and grow, and also see the rewards.
4. STOP COMPARING AND COUNT YOUR BLESSINGS: Your story is different than Suzie’s story. IT IS OKAY! I live in a 1969 year old home. We love to fix up houses, but for us it’s a slow slow process. We save our money and do one project at a time. And then I compare myself to my friends who buy brand new houses, with brand new everythings. I see posts after posts of people who buy 100’s of dollars worth of décor. It sucks sometimes. Does that make me ANY less than someone else? Nope. Does that make them better than me? NOPE. Because I weigh more than Betty does that make me any less of a person? (Technically that makes me a ‘’bigger” person literally… haha JK) Nope. Put down your phone, FORCE yourself not to think negatively of yourself or someone else because of the things that you have. It’s poisonous behavior. It can fester and leave you unhappy forever. It’s not fair to yourself or the people to whom you are comparing. Start focusing on what you DO have! Write them down if you have to! LOVE YOURSELF AND YOUR AMAZING LIFE!!!
5. REALIZE YOU ARE NOT PERFECT: As a mother and a wife I am torn into a million different directions. I can’t tell you how many times I have sat down defeated and cried because I am too overwhelmed that my
body and mind can’t do it all. I got sick recently and had to slow down. It was the best blessing for me. I was forced to see that my TO DO list will ALWAYS be full. If I can prioritize and realistically set goals each day I can get through them with enough time to take a deep breath, love on my family, and enjoy life. I used to have to clean my house every single night so I could have it look perfect in the morning. Yeah it’s nice but It’s not realistic. I am imperfect, and I am okay with that!!!
I hope something here can help you! Try one out! Happiness is found inside YOU!!! Not the things you have, not the body you want, not how hunky dory the world is! Let’s shout from the roof tops… “BRING IT ON!!!!!!!!!”