Happiness

Happiness for Beginners, a book by Katherine Center has made me stop and think about what true happiness really means. In the book she talks about how it's not the wanting that makes you happy, but the appreciation of what you already have that's the key. If the wanting made us happy we would never be truly satisfied because the minute we got what we wanted, we would be inclined to go looking for something else.

In the book, she also talks about the power of positive thinking and how acknowledging 3 good things that happened each day makes us grateful and trains our brains to look for the good in our life, instead of focusing on the bad. It seems, as humans, we're wired to see the problems because it was a survival mechanism and way of watching out for danger in the past, however, being constantly on high alert makes us anxious and unable to appreciate all the good that surrounds us.

After thinking about what truly makes a person happy, I agree it's the little things that we take for granted each day. Being with people in an atmosphere where we can relax and be ourselves. The sun as it peaks through the clouds on a rainy day. A cheerful store worker at check out. A bouquet of roses. An encouraging message just when you need it. The unconditional love of a puppy as it cuddles up in your lap. And don't forget those good surprises that seem to come out of nowhere, but end up turning your life around in the best way. As Katherine Center puts it, "After all, life will hand each one of us our fair share of despair and loss and suffering- and then some. That's certain. But just as certain: It will also give us slices of chocolate cake, and sunny, seventy-two-degree days, and breezes that rustle the trees. Good things are so easy to overlook, but that doesn't make them any less there."

If we really begin to think about it we could go on and on about the good things in life. It's appreciating and enjoying what's in our life right now without ruminating about the past, or worrying about the future that brings true Happiness...

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