Sometimes it Truly is the Little Things… So Always Keep Your Eyes, Ears, and Hearts Open!

“The art of being happy lies in the power of extracting happiness from common things.” ~ Henry Ward Beecher

I’ve been thinking a lot about happiness lately. A global pandemic…. with constant bickering and dissention among most people affected by it… an unstable economy, and challenging trips to the store (when will they EVER load up on cat food again?!!) may seem like a crazy time to think about happiness.

Then again, maybe it’s the perfect time to think about happiness.

Sadly, “how to be happy” has always been one of the most searched for things, online and off. The past few years has made it even more so. While it may seem like an understatement of epic proportions, the truth is it’s often better to simply allow happiness to find you than to go seeking for it.

It is, after all, an even better hider than Bigfoot in the game of hide and seek.

I think one of the reasons is, no one knows just exactly what it looks like. How are you supposed to find something if it doesn’t have a readily available profile bio or description of its vital statistics?!

I do, actually, have one theory about looking for happiness and, depending upon your mood at the moment, you will either think I may have a point or think I may need to be locked up.

I hope it isn’t the latter… I mean, sure I’m a homebody, but I don’t like lockdowns!

Here’s my theory: Looking for happiness is actually a waste of time and energy because it’s already in the room with us… hiding behind a temporary fog of disappointment, worries, anxieties, or grief.

It is there!

When we go through really tough  periods of time – whether it’s a horrible day or week at the office, a broken dream, any kind of loss (big or small) – a kind of fog descends upon us. It hinders our view of things that could make us smile – if we could only see them.

It’s during these trying times that we have to make a conscious effort to lean in toward the happiness and make a concentrated effort to see them. We won’t find them with a Google search, we’ll only find them with a search of our own life.

Below are just a few hiding places Happiness may be waiting for you…

• a cat’s meow
• a spouse telling you supper was “fantastic”
• the smell of coffee in the morning
• the smell of coffee in the afternoon
• the smell of coffee in the evening
• try not to judge my coffee obsession
• a child’s laughter (pretty sure they have healing potential)
• an old episode of Sanford and Son, I Love Lucy, or Andy Griffith
• a great old Western you used to watch with your dad
• an Agatha Christie mystery
• Christmas songs!
• birds at the bird feeder
• a perfect sunrise
• a perfect sunset
• a dog’s joy when you come home from the store
• a cat’s indifference when you come home from anywhere
• cooking
• the beauty and deliciousness of sushi
• the artistry of a butterfly
• coloring in a coloring book (one for adults or children!)
• reading the book of Psalms
• losing yourself in a History Channel show about Amelia Earhart or a favorite time in history
• baking cupcakes
• eating cupcakes!
• redesigning a room in your house
• cleaning your garage (okay, happiness doesn’t hide in the work, but it sure is there when it’s done!)
• yoga
• Motown!
• turning on the Boomerang channel and watching old Tom and Jerry cartoons
• a 15 minute walk, with your eyes, ears, and heart all open and taking in every moment
• taking pictures of trees, grandbabies, cats, the sky… anything that fascinates you

The list goes on and on and on and on…

The steps to having more happiness in your life are simple..

1. Keep your eyes open to see all of your blessings.
2. Keep your ears on guard for every whisper and echo of joy.
3. Stay completely in the moment… you just never know when happiness is going to brush against your skin.

Always be open to the magic around you! ~ Joi (“Joy”)