I haven't been doing a blog every day. Sitting for extended periods in front of the computer is still painful (I think it's the chair) But I've been waiting for Christian to finish his homework so I can take the kids to the library (books are due today, of course I always wait until the absolute due date . . . we'll work on that.)
On the bright side, I've been getting more done around the house because I feel better if I move more often instead of sitting on my butt all day!
On today's quote . . .
"There is only one person who could ever make you happy, and that person is you." ~David Burns~
I like this quote. I've been there where I thought I could never be happy without a certain person in my life . . . where that person had ultimate control over my happiness. That is no way to live. I now know that I can be happy all by myself, if need be. If something happened between me and Adam, I would find happiness again. If, God forbid, something happened to one of my kids, I could eventually find happiness again. My happiness does not depend on anyone or anything but myself and God. And that is a comfort. Adam would not want my world to end if something happened to him. Neither would my kids. No one who truly loves you would want you to be miserable for the rest of your life, or ever for that matter. As far as people making me happy, like my kids, they only make me happy if I remember to enjoy them. The things they say and do. It starts with me. They make me happy only be cause I choose to enjoy them. A person only makes you happy if you choose to appreciate what they say and do. A lot of time this is automatic, but sometimes we have to make the conscious decision. Even with kids, sometimes it's a conscious effort to appreciate my kids. But always worth while. People come and go in our lives, no one lives forever. Isn't it a comfort to know that all we need is ourselves to be happy?
If you need more than yourself to be happy, it may be time to think about it. I'm not saying there is anything wrong with wanting people in your life, spending times with them, enjoying them. But we want to be self-sufficient also. Our happiness depends on it.
Love you and think of you often,
MOTH3R
Monday, March 17, 2008
Monday, March 10, 2008
"In the hopes of reaching the moon men fail to see the flowers that blossom at their feet." ~Albert Schweitzer~
I'm BACK!!!
If anyone's been wondering where I went . . . I strained my back sometime prior to Wednesday. I was in a lot of pain and funny thing, sitting was excruciating but walking around, cleaning, was not! So that meant not a lot of time in front of the computer, but I did catch my kitchen up that I let go . . . so it was a blessing in disguise. I get daily quotes, called Word of the Day, from gratefulness.org, and on Friday was this one "I've never felt a pain that didn't bear a blessing. ~Gene Knudsen Hoffman~" How appropriate! My kids helped pick stuff off the floor that I wanted since bending was a little difficult, but my kitchen counters are spotless! My back is better, not completely perfect, but better. The worst is long rides/drives in the car . . . which from where we live is pretty much anywhere. I hurt when I first get to work, but by the end of the day I'm moving pretty good.
Some would think the quote above on pain would be my quote, but I want to go back to the one I started on Wednesday but found to painful to complete.
"In the hopes of reaching the moon men fail to see the flowers that blossom at their feet." ~Albert Schweitzer~
I find this a really beautiful quote.
There is nothing wrong with "reaching for the moon". This country was built by people who wanted to "reach for the moon", both literally and figuratively. That's how great progress is made. But on a personal level, the only thing that is wrong is forgetting to appreciate things along the way. Only in hind site do we see the opportunities, situations and relationships we missed along the way because of our single-mindedness.
Growing up, I always wanted to be a mother, and though my first was not a planned pregnancy, maybe that single-minded desire led me to be less cautious that I might have otherwise been. Reaching for my moon, I missed out on my 20's. I watched my friends "have lives" while I stayed home with the babies. My moon was and is an extremely worthwhile goal, nothing to regret, but I am aware of the flowers I missed along the way. That was always my advice for my young friends . . . wait to have kids, there will be plenty of time later, take time to enjoy being a couple right now. Now as more and more of my friends are entering their 30's, my advice will probably be more tempered, but we all have instances in our past that we wish we could have done differently and would gladly warn others if we could.
Unfortunately most of the those lessons are learned the hard way. But what if we could become more aware, now, of the flowers, now? I can't change how I did things back then, but I sure can enjoy what I have now. As tough as anyone of us have it, there is always something we can appreciate and be grateful for.
All of the above aside, I think it's a really beautiful quote.
Love and Blessings!
MOTH3R
If anyone's been wondering where I went . . . I strained my back sometime prior to Wednesday. I was in a lot of pain and funny thing, sitting was excruciating but walking around, cleaning, was not! So that meant not a lot of time in front of the computer, but I did catch my kitchen up that I let go . . . so it was a blessing in disguise. I get daily quotes, called Word of the Day, from gratefulness.org, and on Friday was this one "I've never felt a pain that didn't bear a blessing. ~Gene Knudsen Hoffman~" How appropriate! My kids helped pick stuff off the floor that I wanted since bending was a little difficult, but my kitchen counters are spotless! My back is better, not completely perfect, but better. The worst is long rides/drives in the car . . . which from where we live is pretty much anywhere. I hurt when I first get to work, but by the end of the day I'm moving pretty good.
Some would think the quote above on pain would be my quote, but I want to go back to the one I started on Wednesday but found to painful to complete.
"In the hopes of reaching the moon men fail to see the flowers that blossom at their feet." ~Albert Schweitzer~
I find this a really beautiful quote.
There is nothing wrong with "reaching for the moon". This country was built by people who wanted to "reach for the moon", both literally and figuratively. That's how great progress is made. But on a personal level, the only thing that is wrong is forgetting to appreciate things along the way. Only in hind site do we see the opportunities, situations and relationships we missed along the way because of our single-mindedness.
Growing up, I always wanted to be a mother, and though my first was not a planned pregnancy, maybe that single-minded desire led me to be less cautious that I might have otherwise been. Reaching for my moon, I missed out on my 20's. I watched my friends "have lives" while I stayed home with the babies. My moon was and is an extremely worthwhile goal, nothing to regret, but I am aware of the flowers I missed along the way. That was always my advice for my young friends . . . wait to have kids, there will be plenty of time later, take time to enjoy being a couple right now. Now as more and more of my friends are entering their 30's, my advice will probably be more tempered, but we all have instances in our past that we wish we could have done differently and would gladly warn others if we could.
Unfortunately most of the those lessons are learned the hard way. But what if we could become more aware, now, of the flowers, now? I can't change how I did things back then, but I sure can enjoy what I have now. As tough as anyone of us have it, there is always something we can appreciate and be grateful for.
All of the above aside, I think it's a really beautiful quote.
Love and Blessings!
MOTH3R
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
"Happiness resides not in possessions and not in gold; the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul." ~Democritus~
So, I'm updating today and here is my next quote:
"Happiness resides not in possessions and not in gold; the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul." ~Democritus~
How easy is it to forget this and dwell on the things we want but can't have (right now) for whatever reason. This is a problem that really steels our happiness. We've all heard the saying "You can't take it with you" but it usually does not faze us in our day to day lives. And a lot of times we take it as a license to spend and what we do have now since we can't take the money with us. We all know how wanting what we don't have can make us unhappy.
But this quote can be applied another way. How bout having too much stuff!!! I know suffer from that. My house is so small and so full of (lets be honest) garbage that I don't dare let anyone come over. We have way more then we need, we definitely don't use it all, and the chances we will ever use most of it is unlikely, especially using it enough to make it worth while hanging onto all that time instead of just replacing it if the need arises. I have decided I want to take a more minimalist approach to my possessions, definitely not in extreme way - I still like having things, but why have stuff to just sit in closets, the garage, the basement and not even get used once a year? Seasonal stuff is understandable, holiday decorations, summer stuff, winter stuff etc. But looking around my dining room, it's mostly garbage. So I just need to get rid of it. If it hasn't found a home by now (we moved over a year ago) it's obviously not something I use or love.
All this stuff definitely steels my happiness. But I'm working on it and making babystep progress so lets not dwell on that. I won't have all this chaos (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) forever.
We all know this, it's hard to stop wanting things we don't have (I wan't an 80 or 160gb Ipod) and that has a place in our lives because it causes us to work for what we want. But we don't need to spend everyday thinking about it. If we spend more time thinking about what makes us happy, not what will make us happy. It would help a lot.
How many of you have more stuff then you need, but it seems like nothing you want? It's so easy to accumulate "stuff", and so hard to get rid of it because it's so easy to let it stay.
I love my small house, and can envision it with a lot less stuff, and a lot more fun on the inside.
I guess this blog was sort of all over. But we need to look inside us for happiness, not outside us.
I love you and pray for you!
MOTH3R
"Happiness resides not in possessions and not in gold; the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul." ~Democritus~
How easy is it to forget this and dwell on the things we want but can't have (right now) for whatever reason. This is a problem that really steels our happiness. We've all heard the saying "You can't take it with you" but it usually does not faze us in our day to day lives. And a lot of times we take it as a license to spend and what we do have now since we can't take the money with us. We all know how wanting what we don't have can make us unhappy.
But this quote can be applied another way. How bout having too much stuff!!! I know suffer from that. My house is so small and so full of (lets be honest) garbage that I don't dare let anyone come over. We have way more then we need, we definitely don't use it all, and the chances we will ever use most of it is unlikely, especially using it enough to make it worth while hanging onto all that time instead of just replacing it if the need arises. I have decided I want to take a more minimalist approach to my possessions, definitely not in extreme way - I still like having things, but why have stuff to just sit in closets, the garage, the basement and not even get used once a year? Seasonal stuff is understandable, holiday decorations, summer stuff, winter stuff etc. But looking around my dining room, it's mostly garbage. So I just need to get rid of it. If it hasn't found a home by now (we moved over a year ago) it's obviously not something I use or love.
All this stuff definitely steels my happiness. But I'm working on it and making babystep progress so lets not dwell on that. I won't have all this chaos (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) forever.
We all know this, it's hard to stop wanting things we don't have (I wan't an 80 or 160gb Ipod) and that has a place in our lives because it causes us to work for what we want. But we don't need to spend everyday thinking about it. If we spend more time thinking about what makes us happy, not what will make us happy. It would help a lot.
How many of you have more stuff then you need, but it seems like nothing you want? It's so easy to accumulate "stuff", and so hard to get rid of it because it's so easy to let it stay.
I love my small house, and can envision it with a lot less stuff, and a lot more fun on the inside.
I guess this blog was sort of all over. But we need to look inside us for happiness, not outside us.
I love you and pray for you!
MOTH3R
Monday, March 3, 2008
"Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities." ~Aristotle~
Okay the next quote is a little preachy (like I haven't been preachy this whole time, but this is for myself as much as anyone else!)
"Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities." ~Aristotle~
(BTW, I'm setting my timer for 15mins, and I'm going to stop there, so this is probably going to be pretty short.)
I think this saying if we are a little less self-centered we would be happier. And I can agree with it. I find that I am happier when I am not focusing on myself. Though it's always fun to reminisce over good and bad times, dwelling on the past usually distracts from the present and the future. I also find that I'm happier when I think about what I can do for others, whether their my family, my friends, my acquaintances, my coworkers, or just people in general. Making someone else happy, or at least making them feel better, or making something easier for them or whatever the case may be makes me feel happier. And that's a good thing.
Now, I can't even begin to claim I spend all my time in "virtuous activities." But I think, maybe making more of a point of doing "virtuous activities" might help me in my quest in living a happier life.
I'll leave you to decide for yourself what "virtuous activities" are. I don't think there is anything wrong with pastimes and amusements. But they are fleeting, while doing something for the good of others, man or God lasts a lifetime.
Well, I still have over 6 mins, but I don't think I need to grind this one into the ground.
In my thots and prayers!
MOTH3R
"Happiness does not consist in pastimes and amusements but in virtuous activities." ~Aristotle~
(BTW, I'm setting my timer for 15mins, and I'm going to stop there, so this is probably going to be pretty short.)
I think this saying if we are a little less self-centered we would be happier. And I can agree with it. I find that I am happier when I am not focusing on myself. Though it's always fun to reminisce over good and bad times, dwelling on the past usually distracts from the present and the future. I also find that I'm happier when I think about what I can do for others, whether their my family, my friends, my acquaintances, my coworkers, or just people in general. Making someone else happy, or at least making them feel better, or making something easier for them or whatever the case may be makes me feel happier. And that's a good thing.
Now, I can't even begin to claim I spend all my time in "virtuous activities." But I think, maybe making more of a point of doing "virtuous activities" might help me in my quest in living a happier life.
I'll leave you to decide for yourself what "virtuous activities" are. I don't think there is anything wrong with pastimes and amusements. But they are fleeting, while doing something for the good of others, man or God lasts a lifetime.
Well, I still have over 6 mins, but I don't think I need to grind this one into the ground.
In my thots and prayers!
MOTH3R
Sunday, March 2, 2008
"When one door of happiness closes, another opens, . . . " ~Helen Keller~
So, what about my happiness blogs? Have I given up on them already? Not a chance!!!
Here is my next quote . . .
"When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us." ~Helen Keller~
Here is my musing on that . . . I think basically this means we dwell way to much on the bad stuff that happens instead of moving on. Now granted, real tragedies happen and we can't just pretend that they don't. Everyone has to decide for themselves when it is right to move on, but I think we can all admit that we've dwelled once or twice more than we probably needed too.
So how do we move on? That's not an easy answer. I think it's probably different for everyone and as for my recurring theme, takes effort. I think one big thing is asking for help if you need it. Friends and family can be enormously helpful if you let them, by distracting you if nothing else. But sometimes moving on has to be done on your own, figure out what you want or what you need, and do it for yourself. I don't think there's much more I can say about how to move on. A lot of times it just takes a lot of venting, getting all those negative feelings out in the open. And if anyone ever needs to vent, I'm here for you! I may not be able to help, I may not be able to change anything, but I can listen.
But, you will never find happiness if you don't start looking for those windows. How sad to miss a window open, because it closed before you turned around too look for it. I don't want to miss those opportunities. I know no one else wants to either.
I love you all.
MOTH3R
Here is my next quote . . .
"When one door of happiness closes, another opens, but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one that has been opened for us." ~Helen Keller~
Here is my musing on that . . . I think basically this means we dwell way to much on the bad stuff that happens instead of moving on. Now granted, real tragedies happen and we can't just pretend that they don't. Everyone has to decide for themselves when it is right to move on, but I think we can all admit that we've dwelled once or twice more than we probably needed too.
So how do we move on? That's not an easy answer. I think it's probably different for everyone and as for my recurring theme, takes effort. I think one big thing is asking for help if you need it. Friends and family can be enormously helpful if you let them, by distracting you if nothing else. But sometimes moving on has to be done on your own, figure out what you want or what you need, and do it for yourself. I don't think there's much more I can say about how to move on. A lot of times it just takes a lot of venting, getting all those negative feelings out in the open. And if anyone ever needs to vent, I'm here for you! I may not be able to help, I may not be able to change anything, but I can listen.
But, you will never find happiness if you don't start looking for those windows. How sad to miss a window open, because it closed before you turned around too look for it. I don't want to miss those opportunities. I know no one else wants to either.
I love you all.
MOTH3R
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