Happiness

"We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves." -Buddha

Living your life with the intention to be happy and joyful is actually a lot of work. I think a lot of us claim to be happy and content on the surface, but if we took the time to introspect could we actually say that we are happy? I feel like so much of our lives are consumed by stress (environmental contributing to personal) and our own little negative ego bubbles that we forget to take the time to truly ask ourselves: "Am I happy? What makes me happy?" Even the times when we recognize something is wrong, that we are dwelling in our own negativity, laziness and/or fear takes over. We don't want to work at it. It's much easier to just accept our mediocre or unsatisfactory lives rather than to conjure up some courage and strength and to truly make a change.

After reading Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance I started reflecting on "quality." I believe that this idea of quality in our lives and in our work comes straight from our mindset. If we are ambivalent, our lives will reflect that. We will keep floating on, doing just enough to get by, leading unsatisfactory lives in unsatisfactory relationships with a nagging feeling that things could be "better." BUT, what if we took on each challenge in our day with intention-the intention to do our best and draw from our personal energy source to inspire and awaken us to our fullest potential? I believe then we would find quality and in turn find that happiness and fulfillment so many of us are seeking.

It is very easy to fall prey to the negativity in our lives. It's easy to dwell on the things we don't have or things we wish could change. I get caught up in it myself. There are times when I have really felt that I have been backed into a corner with no direction to go. There's always a way out though. We need to remember that there is an answer. We just need to realize it.

Let's stop making excuses and take responsibility for our own happiness in our lives. There's no better time to start than right now. Let's find that joy and never let it go.