Even in the strictest sense of Religions(Buddhism),they have taught me you must think of yourself first,know yourself,and find peace and love within yourself first.It is only after you completely know yourself,can you really understand others and try to help them. I wish you all in this,The Happy Place Forums, happiness,and health to you family !!!

Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to cut back.  From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible.

How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word "refrigeration" mean nothing to you?

How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched 'Jeopardy' on television?

I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?" She would gas up and stammer, "I can't. I have clothes on the line. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast, It looks like rain." And my personal favorite:
"It's Monday." ..She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.

Because Americans cram so much into their lives, we tend to schedule our headaches.. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect!

We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Stevie toilet-trained. We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet. We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.

Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," "I plan on," and "Someday, when things are settled down a bit."

When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of Rollerblades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.

My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process. The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died hapy.

Now...go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to......not something on your SHOULD DO list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say? And why are you waiting?

 [ send green star]

The paradox of our time in history is that we have taller buildings but shorter tempers, wider freeways, but narrower viewpoints.  We spend more, but have less, we buy more, but enjoy less.  We have bigger houses and smaller families, more knowledge, but less judgment, more experts, yet more problems, more medicine, but less wellness.
 
We drink too much, smoke too much, spend too recklessly, laugh too little, drive too fast, get too angry, stay up too late, get up too tired, read too little, watch TV too much, and pray too seldom.  We have multiplied our possessions, but reduced our values.  We talk too much, love too seldom, and hate too often.
 
We've learned how to make a living, but not a life.  We've added years to life not life to years.  We've been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble crossing the street to meet a new neighbor.  We conquered outer space but not inner space.  We've done larger things, but not better things.
 
We've cleaned up the air, but polluted the soul.  We've conquered the atom, but not our prejudice.  We write more, but learn less.  We plan more, but accomplish less.  We've learned to rush, but not to wait.  We build more computers to hold more information, to produce more copies than ever, but we communicate less and less.
 
These are the times of fast foods and slow digestion, big men and small character, steep profits and shallow relationships.  These are the days of two incomes but more divorce, fancier houses, but broken homes.  These are days of quick trips, disposable diapers, throwaway morality, one night stands, overweight bodies, and pills that do everything from cheer, to quiet, to kill.  It is a time when there is much in the showroom window and nothing in the stockroom.  A time when technology can bring this letter to you, and a time when you can choose either to share this insight, or to just hit delete.
 
Remember, spend some time with your loved ones, because they are not going to be around forever.  Remember, say a kind word to someone who looks up to you in awe, because that little person soon will grow up and leave your side.  Remember, to give a warm hug to the one next to you, because that is the only treasure you can give with your heart and that doesn't cost a cent.
 
Remember, to say, "I love you" to your partner and your loved ones, but most of all mean it.  A kiss and an embrace will mend hurt when it comes from deep inside of you.  Remember to hold hands and cherish the moment for someday that person will not be there again.  Give time to love, give time to speak, and give time to share the precious thoughts in your mind.
 
HOW TO STAY YOUNG
 
1.    Throw out nonessential numbers.  This includes age, weight and height.  Let the doctor worry about them.  That is why you pay him/her.
 
2.    Keep only cheerful friends.  The grouches pull you down.
 
3.    Keep learning.  Learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever.  Never let the brain idle.  "An idle mind is the devil's workshop."  And the devil's name is Alzheimer's.
 
4.     Enjoy the simple things.   
 
5.    Laugh often, long and loud.  Laugh until you gasp for breath.
 
6.    The tears happen.  Endure, grieve, and move on.  The only person who is with us our entire life is ourselves and God.  Be ALIVE while you are alive.
 
7.    Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music. plants, hobbies, whatever.  Your home is your refuge.

8.    Cherish you health:  If it is good, preserve it.  If it is unstable, improve it.  If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
 
9.    Don't take guilt trips.  Take a trip to the mall, to the next county, to a foreign country, but NOT to where the guilt is.
 
10.  Tell the people you love that you love them, at every opportunity.
 
AND ALWAYS REMEMBER:
 
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.
 
- George Carlin -

 [ send green star]

Here's something to help slow you down

Think about them one at a time BEFORE going on to the next one...

IT DOES MAKE YOU FEEL GOOD, especially the thought at the end.

1.  Falling in love.
 
2.  Laughing so hard your face hurts.
 
3.  A hot shower.
 
4.  No lines at the supermarket
 
5.  A special glance.
 
6.  Getting mail

7.  Taking a drive on a pretty road.
 
8..  Hearing your favorite song on the radio.
 
9.  Lying in bed listening to the rain outside.
 
10.  Hot towels fresh out of the dryer.
 
11.  Chocolate milkshake.  (or vanilla or strawberry!)
 
12.  A bubble bath.
 
13.  Giggling.

14.  A good conversation.

15.  The beach

16.  Finding a 20 dollar bill in your coat from last winter.

17.  Laughing at yourself.

19.  Midnight phone calls that last for hours.

20.  Running through sprinklers.

21.  Laughing for absolutely no reason at all.

22.  Having someone tell you that you're beautiful.

23.  Laughing at an inside joke.

24.  Friends.

25.  Accidentally overhearing someone say something nice about you.

26.  Waking up and realizing you still have a few hours left to sleep.

27.  Your first kiss (either the very first or with a new partner).

28.  Making new friends or spending time with old ones.

29.  Playing with a new puppy.

30.  Having someone play with your hair.

31.  Sweet dreams.

32.  Hot chocolate.

33.  Road trips with friends.

34.  Swinging on swings.

35.  Making eye contact with a cute stranger.

36.  Making chocolate chip cookies.

37.  Having your friends send you homemade cookies.

38.  Holding hands with someone you care about.

39.  Running into an old friend and realizing that some things (good or bad) never change.

40.  Watching the expression on someone's face as they open a much desired present from you.

41.  Watching the sunrise.

42.  Getting out of bed every morning and being grateful for another beautiful day.

43.  Knowing that somebody misses you.

44.  Getting a hug from someone you care about deeply.

45.  Knowing you've done the right thing, no matter what other people think.

 [ send green star]