The rain had stopped and the birds were tweeting as the sun crept through the window. I took a deep breathe pushing my belly out and slowly exhaled all the way back down into my belly. Ahhhh. I felt grateful to have slept well. I felt grateful to not be in pain today. I wiggled my toes. I felt grateful for another day.
If this all seems silly you are in a lucky time of your life. May I say this will not last forever. You will go through heart-ache and pain if you live long enough. There are seasons to life. Some are not so good. Some are glorious. To choose hope through all of it is an act of will.
You can up the happy moments by upping the healthy practices. Many studies of those who are happy point to practices of gratitude – being grateful as the leading determinant to happiness. Let me put this into a formula: gratitude + hope=happiness. Want that?
Create daily practices that work for you. Share them with your friends and family and ask them what they do. Steal the ones that might work for you and try them out.
What is something you hope for that you are too afraid to say to yourself quietly, to yourself. Say it right now to yourself. I’ll wait.
Write it down in a secret spot. What would you have to do to make that a reality?
I declared when I was 48 years old that I would double it-that I would live to be 96. Who said I could live that long? I did! And, what do I have to do to live that long? Be lucky is probably the biggest contributing factor, but I can juice it by being grateful and choosing to hope. Exercising and eating in moderation will help, too.
This week, work on that goal that you wrote in your secret spot. Manifest it to yourself. And, when you feel ready, share it with a supporter. I can keep a secret if you need a buddy on this.
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