There is joy, and there is woe (bliss and suffering can dance on the same stage), and we humans react to those opposites in many different ways.

Of course, happiness is subjective, but when we choose it, we are actively creating inner peace, moving forward into authenticity and self-worth awareness. (Even a magic wand won’t automatically make that happen!)

How do some people remain vested in joy despite immense loss like my friend, Dan? Like Dave and Carol, who I wrote about last week, how do some cope (with humor) what many would call “disastrous?” And, why do many others almost always only see the glass close to being empty? I wonder if we are pre-birth hardwired to have tendencies toward positivity or negativity? Or, have life experiences formed how we see the world? (I’ll research this.)

Has a hard-knock life created challenges that subjugated joy for you? If so, would you take steps to move forward into a life where any positive mitigates all negative? And, how often do we forget how the “domino effect”—once one person is miserable, it sometimes becomes contagious—alters others’ realities? So often, we’re on auto mode, unaware of how our actions impact not only us but those around us. Our energy (positive or negative) and how we move through life have far-reaching consequences.

On January 1st, 2021, amid COVID and sadness, I started “The Happy Book”—not a journal or even a place for self-discovery; simply a reminder of (small yet incredibly significant) little pieces of joy, primarily about times with other humans. Entry #1 was: 1/1/21 Ringing in the New Year with my family. Most of the notes are just a few words. Some—where there’s so much detail I don’t want to forge—are maybe three sentences.

There are 147 entries so far, and almost all of them are about experiences with other humans! In less than a year and three months, I’ve added a lot of “happy” to my book! None of my short notes may seem earth-shattering or—on the surface—really profound, but they are! Experiences and awarenesses like these are reminders of all the good despite the sorrow. Cumulatively, these “little things” are what matter most and what make life rich.

What small but powerful moments can you record?
Would you start a “Happiness Book?”
Today, would you join me in choosing joy?
Kay

ps. I started listing the first names of the people in “The Happy Book” to add to the end of this post. But there are forty-four unique names, so I thought that might be overboard! So, thank you to all of you who add so much to my life. I am blessed.

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