create your own happiness

Be the change you want to feel. Create it. You have the power.

Be the change you want to see. Choose to change your mind to focus on what’s good, and what you’re thankful for instead of all that is wrong with your given moment. This is hard to do, yet it is critical to our happiness, and is totally doable if we give ourselves permission.

Last night I wanted to change my attitude, so I chose to go for a walk. I was in a pissy mood, and needed to move and stretch and be alone to process my thoughts and to get over my negative feelings. I don’t write about these things because I want to focus on what’s good versus what’s unpleasant. My life is perfectly imperfect and we’re constantly learning and practicing and hopefully getting better all the time.

Life IS unpleasant many times as we pursue happiness, and we all have our unpleasantries, which is why I choose to not write about my own. I don’t need to share these details because I think we should focus on what we wish to create, which for me is joy and peace and love. I choose to share my daily reflections and solutions to dealing with what is and seeing the good even when things are frustrating to me. This helps me to overcome the negative feelings too and to continue down my path of happily ever after.

We all get to choose how we react to what is, and Here I Am is about being present and seeking the good in the middle of the busyness and chaos and pissiness. I know, that’s probably not a word, but doesn’t it sound good?

By going for a walk, I cleared my head and got exercise and released some really good endorphins. I highly recommend going for a long walk when you’re less than happy. It’s so rewarding in so many ways and I came home feeling more peaceful and open minded.

So the next time you’re feeling pissy or down or any other negative feeling, think about what you can do to get through the feeling until it passes and be the change you wish to feel. Don’t wait for someone else. You have the power. Am I right?

nAMaste

We left our hotel in Virginia around 10 am and stopped in DC to see the Iwo Jima Memorial statue and tried to see the MLK Memorial and could not find parking before heading out of town.

It was a lot cooler today and we appreciated the irony from the car as we drove to Maryland.

We wanted to checkout Annapolis and try crab cakes for lunch. The United States Naval Academy is a beautiful campus and the town by the water was very quaint. We enjoyed our brief visit before spending the rest of the day in the car, which wasn’t exactly how we anticipated the day unfolding.

serving others = happiness

Midshipmen walking across campus

beautiful landscape on the USNA, campus

USNA

sea themed stained glass window in the chapel

Maryland blue crab cake. YUM!

We hit lots of standstill traffic as we approached and eventually crawled across the Delaware Memorial Bridge.

We were hoping to be at our next destination for dinner yet we are still traveling at a snail’s pace and our estimated arrival time is approaching tomorrow.

We stopped at a rest area around 7pm for a “healthy” dinner in the car and stopped again at 10 pm for sugary snacks to keep us awake. I chose Pop Rocks because they make me laugh and I needed a laugh to balance out the weary day of travel.

I choose to focus on feeling lucky to be experiencing the East Coast and being with family despite being tired. We’re creating memories, right? And happiness is a state of mind that we get to choose despite our circumstances, every moment.

I choose happiness.

nAMaste