There's a story about a king who challenges his wise men to bring him something that, when he's sad it will make him happy, and when he's happy it will make him sad. They spent months on the project, and return to him with a small ring engraved with the saying, "This too, shall pass." It's a great reminder that everything is cyclical.
Do You really Want Happiness?
Unhappy people are always confused when they are told to try and be happy. Their minds are occupied by grievances; there seems to be no room for new experiences that might be uplifting, and even if they came
along, they would be seen through the gray haze of one's misery.
So the search cannot be for happy experiences. Those are already available in abundance. The search is for an opening that allows happiness to become your experience. This opening comes about very differently from the way most people suppose. Most people try to make themselves happy by forcing their unhappy feelings underground, or by turning their backs on them or pretending that they don’t exist.
If you have a closet stuffed with junk, the best way to find room for new stuff is to clean the closet. In this case the closet is the nervous system, and one cleans it out at the level of awareness.
Communicate your desire to be free of this hurt. Ask for inner guidance to The healing process isn’t mystical; it involves well-known practical steps. Look directly at what hurts you and let it show you what to do. Listen to what you feel, but don’t give in to it. Know for certain that you can remove old hurts. Be patient, since you will have to return to your old hurt many times.
Most people feel trapped by their resentments because their behavior runs counter to these steps. They don’t look honestly at their hurt but focus instead on blaming someone outside themselves. They don’t communicate a desire to let go of their anger but keep nursing it. Instead of listening to what they feel in the moment, they replay the same tired reactions from the past. Instead of being patient, they take a few stabs at healing only to conclude that there’s nothing to be done.
Adapted from: Peace Is the Way, by Deepak Chopra (Harmony Books, 2005).
Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine he sees all day.
It enriches those who receive,
without making poorer those who give.
It takes but a moment,
but the memory of it sometimes lasts forever.
None is so rich or mighty
that he can get along without it.
A smile creates happiness in the home,
fosters good will in business,
and is the countersign of friendship.It brings rest to the weary,
cheer to the discouraged,
sunshine to the sad,
and it is natures best antidote for trouble.
Yet it cannot be bought, begged,
borrowed, or stolen,
for it is something that is of no value
to anyone until it is given away.
Some people are too tired to give you a smile.
Give them one of yours,
as none needs a smile so much
as he who has no more to give.
Little crocodile ...
How cheerfully he seems to grin,
How neatly spreads his claws,
And welcomes little fishes in
With gently smiling jaws"
- Lewis Carroll
"Happiness equals discipline and confidence" - Benjamin Franklin
Beauty, unaccompanied by virtue, is as a flower without perfume."
-- French Proverb
Kindness: Your Inner Smile
Virtue is an "old-fashioned" term that means moral excellence or goodness. A virtuous person possesses certain character traits, or values, that society considers worthy of admiration. Honesty, compassion, courage and kindness are some of the values that make us good in the eyes of others.
Like a flower with an pleasant scent, people who exhibit virtue in their daily lives attract admirers. They are respected by their friends and family, valued by their employer and embraced by their community. They make the world a better place. People who are beautiful on the outside may be pleasing to look at, but people with inner beauty leave a sweet fragrance in the lives of everyone they meet.
Of all the different values a person can possess, kindness is a special quality that generates tremendous power. It uplifts heavy hearts, brightens dark situations, heals hurt feelings. Hatred and anger are no match for the power of kindness. And perhaps best of all, every act of kindness gives you a warm glow in your heart that nothing else can match. You are best to yourself when you are good to others.
Remember, kindness is an excellent measure of your smile power.
Do all the good you can,
By all the means you can,
In all the ways you
can,
In all the places you can,
At all the times you can,
To all the people you can,
As long as ever you can.
-- Ian MacLaren
NEAR to Happiness
"To be kind to all, to like many
and love a few, to be needed and
wanted by those we love, is
certainly the nearest we can come
to happiness."
~Mary Roberts Rhinehart
"Some cause happiness wherever they go; other,
whenever they go."
~~Oscar Wilde
Always put on a good face to all and turn the bad attitude into a good one. Yes, by simply changing our face. The movement of our muscles and our skin with a smile sends the positive energy to the cells of the body that stimulates happy hormones and joyous neurotransmitters. Circulating in our body these biochemical’s bind to cells throughout the body and create a happy and joyous attitude. Yes, the smile converts us to a happy and joyous person. Sad face, sad day and happy face, happy day. Amazing, and it’s as simple as that.
How can life be this easy, just let go of negative thoughts and feelings and then create happy ones? Now put on a happy face, (heard that before) and go out and have a great and happy day.
