An Answered Prayer

I was having an awful morning. I had just dropped little A off at school and got back into my car to head down to Fairfax to go to work. I laid my head on the steering wheel. It was all too much. Too many responsibilities. Too many bills. Fixing the house. Worrying about family. My grandmothers were both desperately ill. Thinking about all I have to do to sell the house and buy a new one this summer. We got audited by the IRS… worrying about work and how two analysts can possibly do the work of four people and not end up a puddle of catatonic goo. Having to sit next to and regularly work with people who I think channel the anti-christ on a daily basis. It was just too much stress. I felt depressed. I honestly… wanted to give up. Crawl under a blanket, cry, and just disappear.

But that is not an option. I closed my eyes and I prayed. “Dear God. Please… PLEASE... I feel terrible today. Help me see the light. Please. I’m begging you. Help. Help me see the light.”

I turned on the car, turned down Centreville Road. And right in front of me was a car with the following license plate:

Vi La Luz

Or translated…. See the light.

A simple answered prayer. Nothing changed. I still had too much work, too much stress, but God had given me a shout out and reminded me that I’m not in this alone. See the light.

There is light. He is the light.

God bless.

True

Fear, Faith, and the Good Fight

They say let go, let God. But somehow that doesn’t get rid of the squeezing pain in my chest. I believe the loving hand of God is watching and guiding us, but that doesn’t stop the blood from rushing to my head when panic sets in. I believe there are angels and spirits around us every day and everywhere looking out for us, but that doesn’t cure the nervous stomachs and stress headaches I have every day.

·         I fear everything! Everything!

·         I fear I’m going to get fired because the new guy is really great…

·         I fear my husband’s new employer will go out of business…

·         I fear my son will hate me when he grows up…

·         I fear my husband will cheat on me…

·         I fear that he will leave me…

·         I fear I’ll never save enough to retire…

·         I fear that cancer will take me from my son before he’s old enough to be on his own…

·         I fear everything.

I want to never be afraid again. I want to be fearless. I want to stop panic attacks and end anxiety attacks in their tracks! I want to forget what worry feels like.

How do you fight fear? How do you stop a panic attack? How do you end worry?

There are so many ways. There are things you can do to prevent fears and stop worries. And there are things you can do when you are in the harsh grip of fear. Here are some things that I have found do work. No one thing works every time, but when one bullet doesn’t kill the serial killing night stalker chasing you… USE EVERY SHELL, EMPTY THE ENTIRE MAGAZINE, AND RELOAD! And if he’s still coming… NEVER EVER GIVE UP… you just keep on running. He’ll give up and you’ll be the last one standing. I promise.

Thirty-five ways to fight fear, stop worries, and end anxiety!

1.       Pray. Pray hard. Pray until you fall asleep or pass out. Scream at God if you think he’s not listening. He is. And he can totally take it.

2.       Take a break… step away from whatever madness you’re in the middle of for 5 minutes or 30. Count to 100. The issues will still be there, but maybe you’ll be more able to handle them.

3.       Face your fear. Imagine that what you fear is definitely going to happen. Work out how you would deal with it. And ask yourself, “So what?” If I get fired so what? My husband is working right now, so maybe we’d lose the house. So what? We’d rent a tiny apartment. So what? We would still be together. We would still love one another. We would still be able to eat. We would still be able to live. So what?

4.       Tell yourself that everything is going to work out perfectly. Even if you don’t believe it, it will confuse your subconscious worry-machine and invite your angels to help make it happen.

5.       Make sure you get enough sleep. Anything less than 6 hours is not enough.

6.       Use positive words and think positive thoughts. If you try hard enough, you are in 100% control of you mind. It takes an effort to replace the negative thought patterns created by years of mental programming, but it’s worth it. And if you do it long enough, you can reprogram yourself. Make your mind your Matrix and you are Neo!

7.       Surround yourself with positive people.

8.       Count your blessings and even write down all the awesome things about yourself. Write down your accomplishments. There are many. Each one is worth a lot. You are worth more than you know.

9.       Do one thing. Know you don’t have to solve all your problems in one night. Just try doing one thing to move you in a more positive direction… maybe it’s brushing up your resume, or exercising, or apologizing. But just do one. Tomorrow you can work on number two.

10.   Exercise. It helps if the exercise involves punching, kicking, and screaming, but if that’s not your bag of candy, try something else.

11.   Think about a time when you had the same or a similar fear. Did your worry happen? What are the chances that what you fear will actually happen? If it did occur, how did you deal with it? How do other people deal with it? Someone, somewhere, definitely has. Look it up. Be inspired.

12.   Get busy working on something. Be so busy your mind cannot be bothered with fear. If your mind is 100% engaged in repairing drywall or de-cluttering your spare room, you won’t have a second to worry about that thing that’s been eating away at your stomach lining.

13.   Phone home…. Call mom, dad, a friend, a grandparent, your parole officer, whoever…. God’s always listening.

14.   If your fears have anything to do with keeping up with the Joneses… remember that they are cheating on each other, they are compulsive liars, their children smoke crack, they are selfish and evil, they worship Satan, and they wear those expensive clothes to cover up their stinking puss-filled souls. Or whatever disgusting thing helps you feel just an inch taller. But truly know that they have their own bag of problems. Their path is different from yours. Your path was chosen by God. Trust Him.

15.   Execute plan Z – a glass or two of wine at night does not a drunkard make.

16.   Execute plan D - Talk to a doctor. If shrinks are not your thing, any regular general practitioner can prescribe some Valium.

17.   Learn to meditate. Repeat a peaceful mantra when everything is quiet and still. Shut down the other voices in your head.

18.   Get creative… dance… sculpt… program… color… write… paint… sing… even if you sound like a blender choking on too much ice for a daiquiri! It doesn’t have to be perfect.

19.   Know our imperfections just mean you’re human… typos are meeningless. Everyone knows what you were tryin' 2 sae enyweigh....

20.   Know we all make mistakes… you are still AWESOME!

21.   Play with your pet. They love you… warts and all.

22.   Take a bath or a shower. Brush your teeth. Slap on some deodorant. Know that even if everything else stinks… you smell FABULOUS!

23.   Look your best… it will make you stand a little taller and feel a little better. Who’s that good looking person in the mirror? That’s right… it’s you!

24.   No matter what is going on, know that things could be harder. Read about someone who has been through the circle of fire and come out shining on the other end… Read about someone who has had to struggle and their fight was the fire that turned them in to a hero… read about Nick Vujicic, or Don Piper, or Dan Caro… or insert your own hero. My grandfather abandoned my grandma and their four small children in the 50s. She not only survived… she thrived. She fought, and prayed, and turned into a beautiful and strong rose who worked like crazy, but managed to trust again, fall in love again, and had four more children.

25.   Stop whatever you are doing and just relax your whole body. Imagine a cat curled in a warm summer window. Purr. Stretch. Lick your paws if that helps.

26.   Live beneath your means. Live simply. Jesus did not have a TV, DVR, a cell phone, a LAN line, a PC, a McMansion, two cars, and a laptop… do you really need all these things?

27.   Simplify your belongings. When your house stops looking like a hoarder's playground, go further. Maybe pretend you’re Amish.

28.   Simplify your responsibilities. Don’t let a cluttered schedule overwhelm you. Do you really have to do all those things on your to-do list? If something doesn’t get done… so what? Seriously.

29.   Breathe slowly and deeply. Empty your lungs as much as you can and then fill them completely.

30.   Change the pace. If you’ve been sitting for a while, stand up. Go for a walk. If you’ve been working non-stop, sit. Be still.

31.   Know that it’s okay to be afraid and that everything is temporary. This too shall pass. Sometimes you just have to wait it out. The rain always stops eventually.

32.   Help someone. Sometimes helping other people with their problems can put our own in perspective or even just distract us long enough to feel a little better.

33.   If you have a husband or wife… maybe a little boom boom would help you feel a little cheerier. Or at the very least, maybe they’ll make you a cup of tea or give you a nice massage.

34.   If you don’t have a love… go get a cup of tea, indulge yourself in something that makes you smile.

35.   Just smile… if you don’t feel a smile anywhere inside… just fake it. Just the act of smiling will often help lift your mood.

Tomorrow is going to be better. If not tomorrow… then the next day definitely. Hang in there little pilgrim. We’re all in this together!

And sometimes fear will bring you alive. Let it light your passions on fire… let it ignite your inner Spartan warrior!

Are you only here if God ensures blue skies and a perfect harvest? Or are you all in for whatever is in store?

If yes… and the fear still grips you… Scream into the storm now… face the hail, lightening, thunder, tsunami, and tornadoes… scream to God that you are ready and willing to fight the good Fight. Scream into the wind…. BRING IT ON! GIVE ME YOUR WORST!

Put on your boots… apply your SPF30… layer on the war paint... pray… and hike up your kilt and yell to the fates: I will never quit! I WILL NEVER GIVE UP! I WILL NEVER SURRENDER!

How Did You Die

by Edmund Vance Cooke

Did you tackle that trouble that came your way

With a resolute heart and cheerful?

Or hide your face from the light of day

With a craven soul and fearful?

Oh, a trouble's a ton, or a trouble's an ounce,

Or a trouble is what you make it,

And it isn't the fact that you're hurt that counts,

But only how did you take it? You are beaten to earth?

Well, well, what's that!

Come up with a smiling face.

It's nothing against you to fall down flat,

But to lie there--that's disgrace.

The harder you're thrown, why the higher you bounce

Be proud of your blackened eye!

It isn't the fact that you're licked that counts;

It's how did you fight--and why?

And though you be done to the death, what then?

If you battled the best you could,

If you played your part in the world of men,

Why, the Critic will call it good.

Death comes with a crawl, or comes with a pounce,

And whether he's slow or spry,

It isn't the fact that you're dead that counts,

But only how did you die?

Keep up the good fight… my friend.
Hugs...

True

Global Warming or God?

My son made a good friend in Kindergarten: John. He’s the sweetest little thing. Always building something with Legos. Always friendly and fun. His floppy blond hair is always falling in his face. They were in the same class last year. This year they are in the same after school program. I always find them playing together when I pick up little Alex. John said something to Alex and Alex passed it on to me one day after school last week and it broke my heart.

John said he wished he had never been born.

Oh sweet, Jesus… my heart breaks. What 6 year old has thoughts like that? What sadness is in his life that he could say such a thing? I had no idea. John and Alex have been asking to have a play date recently… so I sent a note to school to John’s mom. We had met before, but I didn’t even know her name. We got together last Saturday and the boys played together all day. And Kay and I talked over coffee and I found out why John thinks those too sad and too mature thoughts. They have been abandoned by John’s father. After eighteen years of marriage he left his wife.

No…

After 18 years, and 3 children… he left his family.

No…

After 18 years, 3 children, dragging his loving family all over the world and uprooting them every few years and forcing them to start over in new schools, with new friends… he abandoned his family with nothing.

He met his high school sweetheart on a social networking site and left the woman who had been there for him… taken vows of faithfulness to him… torn her body apart to bring his children into this world… sacrificed developing herself professionally to support his career and dreams… and now he’s gone.

Disappeared…

No child support…

No alimony…

No contact…

And now… just after Christmas… they live in a small apartment… John’s mom works her fingers to the bone at the only job she can find… and they have no electricity… in the dead of winter.

Some people think this unseasonably warm winter is evidence of global climate change. I think it’s evidence of God. Right now… little children and families have no electricity… and God has let this winter be warm. Right now… small babies are living in tents less than 20 minutes from my home because their families… EVEN WITH JOBS… cannot afford a place to live… and sometimes food… and God made this winter warm…

My heart breaks for little John… and I feel a love of God for this warm winter… today it was 70 degrees in Washington DC… I thank God for this weather… but, part of me wishes I could find little John’s father… break his legs with a lead pipe and then drop him off, and his awful high school sweetheart, in front of the police station and have them both locked up in prison where they belong.

Lord forgive me…

But, I don’t think this is global climate change. This is God looking out for the weak and the humble in these rough economic times… pray for John and Kay…

If you happen to have a Nintendo DS that you’re not using, I know a little 6 year old with a birthday at the end of March that could use a little happy play time… shoot me an email…

truestillwater@yahoo.com

Pray and listen carefully… you can hear the angels singing…

Luv and hugs,

True

P.S. Sorry about the typos… this just got me so upset… 

So Far So Good… So Why Do I Feel Like Crying

Nothing changed. The mass is steady and there’s a 50/50 chance it’s not cancer. Great… right? Still alive and kicking… still have insurance… still have a job… still have a wonderful husband and a bright son… so why do I feel like crying?

I think I’ve been so overwhelmed with emotional situations lately that I may be exploding… not brains on the wall… but emotional meltdown… and I think it’s probably 100% normal. My friend Karn’s mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. Karn has been strong and supportive… through the mastectomy and now through the chemotherapy. She’s been the perfect daughter. All while losing a cat, having a car break down, working for a horrible boss, and being lonely having not found love… etc… etc… and she has stayed strong…. A tough outer layer… but I’ve seen cracks. Every once in a while her eyes turn red, and her voice cracks.

We all crack.

My cracking points…

The mass in my breast…

House full of mold…

Neighbor damaging my property because he isn’t maintaining his plumbing…

One sister is struggling financially at a job where the boss treats her horribly and there’s nothing I can do about it…

One sister has her dream job… but she has no faith... she's made selfish choices… and she is sucking every penny out of my parents’ bank account… their retirement money.

We all crack. I’m cracking… The trick is to use a strong and reliable adhesive to put those cracks back together. Faith and prayer can keep you from coming completely apart… give it to God and keep on walking.

I met this beautiful girl and Walmart yesterday. I firmly believe that Walmart must only hire saints and sages because I run into the most amazing people there. She was young… maybe 28… maybe… she had 6 kids. SIX KIDS! Dear patient Mary, 6…. I can’t even imagine. Her husband left her. It’s two weeks till Christmas. I told her that I thought she was an inspiration and I didn’t know how she could do it. She said she just prays on it and keeps on walking.

That’s all any of us can do I guess. Pray on it and keep on walking. There’s so much in this world that is beyond us. 7 billion people in the world and many of them living worse than animals and there is nothing we can do about it except give our little, pray on it, and keep on walking.

Their parents selling their children into slavery and there is nothing we can do about it except pray, and keep on walking.

Two people die every second, and there is nothing you can do about it. Except pray. Keep on walking.

But have faith. There is immense power in prayer.

Jesus tells us, "…I tell you the truth, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you" (Matthew 17:20).

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 tells us, "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

The Bible urges us, "And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints" (Ephesians 6:18).

Whatever hardships you face, whatever sorrow you see, for whatever joy and blessings you receive. Pray. Prayers are heard, and answered in ways we cannot conceive.

When you reach your cracking point and the pain and sorry seems more than you can handle, pray. And keep on walking. Because you are not alone. None of us is. We are here together with angels, spirits, and God who really do care about each one of us.

Pray to Jesus, to God, to Mary, just pray. The words can come from your heart, or perhaps the words come from prayers that are older than you… it doesn’t matter. Just pray. And keep on walking:

Hail Mary, full of grace.

Our Lord is with you.

Blessed are you among women,

and blessed is the fruit of your womb,

Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God,

pray for us sinners,

now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Have a blessed Monday.

True

A Different Way - A Spiritual Journey - Blog Carnival

I love reading beautiful blogs on spiritual thoughts and ideas. I would love to share your blog with my readers. Please submit your spiritual blog post to blogcarnival.com if you would like me to showcase your writings on my upcoming Carnival. My Blog Carnival, A Different Way - A Spiritual Journey is listed on blogcarnival.com under religion and philosophy.

I look forward to reading your blog!

True

How to Want What You Have By Doing Happy!

Being Happy Versus Doing Happy

“Happiness is not a state to arrive at, but a manner of traveling.” – Margaret Lee Runbeck

There are millions of books and quotes that tell people how to be happy. To Be Happy semantically illustrates a state of existence. Operating like being happy is something to be achieved may actually be stopping many people from feeling long-term happiness. Happiness is also too vague. It almost seems to be generally the absence of pain, the absence of loss, the absence of fear, the absence of loneliness, etc. But if we can only be happy, no one in the world would be happy. We all hurt. We all mourn. Sometimes we’re all afraid. At times, we are all lonely.

The trick is to learn to be happy in spite of it all!

The only way to be happy in spite of it all is to relinquish all your expectations. If you have no expectations you cannot be disappointed. If you have come to terms with the worst that can happen, your fear has no power to steal even an ounce of joy from you. Our expectations stand in the way of us fully accepting God’s plan.

You may expect that if you work hard for a steady company, stay late, network, that you’ll be promoted, have security, and eventually collect a comfortable pension. God’s plan might be that you are meant to be an entrepreneur with courage to strike out on your own. God’s plan might be that you find something that you are so passionate about that you never retire or collect a pension. Perhaps you work until the day you die.

“Sometimes we stare so long at a door that is closing that we see too late the one that is open.”

 Alexander Graham Bell

You might expect to be married with three kids by the time you are twenty-eight. You might expect that you’ll live in a single family home, with a picket fenced lawn, a dog, and be a stay at home mom. These expectations can make you bitter if God’s gifts to you, his plan for your life, include being a mom to one child in a flat in New York, while working at a job that provides more money than fulfillment.

Our expectations make us unhappy. But if we came to life like students, like beginners, even like beggars, who would not be able to appreciate the gifts they were given.

 “Happiness is not having what you want. It is wanting what you have.” Rabbi Hyman Schachtel

We may recognize our blessings and even be somewhat grateful for them, but if we have different expectations we take our blessings for granted and feel kind of disappointed, and what a sin that is. It is a sin to God for not giving sincere praise for the wonderful things we have in our life, and it is a sin against that wonderful thing or person or situation that we are lucky enough to have.

How do we begin to get rid of our expectations? How do you want what you have? Here are just a few ways to learn to want what you have:

1.       Watch less TV. Television shows are action-packed with unrealistic visions of life. How can we hope to have a real life compete with one that has been surgically enhanced, has a full-time nanny, has the benefit of inherited wealth, etc.

2.       Recogize things for what they are and not how nice they seem. Your co-worker with the 3500 square foot home, the Lexus, and the SUV looks like he’s on top of the world. He actually is on top of a lot of debt and probably doesn’t have the freedom you do, or as much savings.

That super fit gym rat looks like he must be happy and probably in a long-term relationship and is adored by her. In actually, he has to watch every little thing he eats, he spends so much time in the gym, that he neglects his relationships, his spirit, and his mind.

3.       Read fewer magazines. The images are often more unrealistic than those on television.

4.       Count your blessings.

Realize that each one of them is temporary and can be taken away in an instant. Name them one by one and realize each moment you have with your child, parent, sibling, spouse, friend is a gift. At any moment God could call them home.

5.       Read biographies. Our struggles connect us.

6.       Use what you have. Too many people have blessings stored away in their lives that they never use. Books gathering dust in closets or attics that haven’t been read in years. When is the last time you read Moby Dick, something by Napoleon Hill, or your favorite spiritual literature? Pull it out. Be inspired! Many people have creative skills that they haven’t used in years. Do you paint or draw, or are you a beautiful writer? Write! Do you have a blender, or miter saw, or dance shoes that are gathering dust? Do you have a beautiful voice? Make a smoothie! Hang some drywall! Dance! Sing!

7.       Read the world section of the newspaper. Seeing how little others have can help you appreciate the huge things you take for granted every day: libraries, public schools, grocery stores, clean water, the right to vote, the right to drive, religious freedom…

8.       Give thanks for your life. Every second 1 or 2 people dies are taking their last breath. (http://www.wholesomewords.org/missions/greatc.html)

9.       Give thanks for your legs, your arms, your mouth, whatever blessings you have. Somewhere there are many people who would love to have your gifts.

10.   Smile. Your face is a reflection of how disappointed or happy you are with what you have. When you are feeling grateful for something, show it!

11.   Hug someone and tell them how happy and how lucky you are that you have them. Tell them often. If you are too far for a hug, tell them in an email or over the phone, on twitter, on facebook, wherever. Just tell them.

Being grateful is a habit. It is one we have to cultivate and encourage in our spirits. Practice taking nothing for granted. NOTHING! Your gratefulness for the little things (which are not actually little at all) is a prayer of thanks… why not do this every day, all day, and forever? The world will look different to you… you’ll recognize so much beauty that was always there. Put on your rosy colored glasses!

Today I’m going for another mammogram. The doctor says that no matter what it looks like, he’s probably going to recommend that I see a surgeon. I’m a little freaked out. Just when I thought I could take a breath… relax about this mass in my chest… but I’m grateful I have a doctor who is cautious with my health. I’m grateful that I have health insurance. I’m grateful I live in a country where there are so many great radiologists, oncologists, and surgeons. I’m grateful I have a friend who will come with me and hold my hand at the surgeon’s office.

And right now… I’m grateful for my boobs. J And if one has to go, I’ll be grateful for my new one!

So today… be grateful. Really grateful. Love yourself, your friends, this moment…

Love,

True

I’d be truly grateful for any prayers you send my way …

How To Be Happy Right Now

“Being happy doesn't mean that everything is perfect. It means that you've decided to look beyond the imperfections.” - ?

Everyone wants to be happy, but for many it is an elusive goal. We struggle, we do what’s right, we make the wise choices, but somehow, it’s not enough to be happy. Some of us struggle through days, weeks, months, and sometimes sad years wanting to be happy. With millions of self-help books on the shelves there should be no secrets left. We should all be ecstatic right? So what gives? Why do we still struggle? What is it?

“We tend to forget that happiness doesn't come as a result of getting something we don't have, but rather of recognizing and appreciating what we do have.” -  Frederick Keonig

What is the secret to happiness?

You don’t have to go searching for happiness. The secret is that you have everything you need already right now. Happiness is your God-given right. The secret is even told in the Lord’s prayer:

“Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory. for ever and ever. Amen”

The secret is to live in the moment. Let your thoughts not think about yesterday’s bread, or tomorrow’s bread, or your neighbor’s bread, but enjoy today’s bread that is right in front of you. In this moment, in this second, the world is probably not so scary.

If I think about the plumber who’s coming later, the contractor who has to look at the mold growing on the drywall, a possible leak in the roof, the lump in my breast, my son wanting a brother or sister that we can’t give him, saving for his college, work being a beast, the economy, the… the… I’m overwhelmed to the point of breaking down, crying, and giving up hope. But…

But… if… I think about this moment. If I let my thoughts linger on my cinnamon spice coffee, the feel of the keys under my typing fingers, the quiet while my husband and son sleep, the world is not so scary. It’s actually peaceful and beautiful. So one secret to being happy… it to take this moment that God has given you… and linger in it… love it… be grateful for it.

There are many things you can do to be happy right now, and let this be the first one.

Eleven ways to be happy right now!

1.       Be in the moment. Be mindful. Pay attention to every sense and every detail of each second. Don’t worry about tomorrow. Be here. Be now.

2.       Fill your life with music. Everything is a little better which a rocking soundtrack. So the next time you have to do a dreaded chore, put on your favorite tune. Maybe sing along. Maybe even dance.

3.       Make sure you do at least one thing every day that is just to make you happy. Fifteen minutes, just for you. Whatever it may be, it has to be a completely selfish thing – a bubble bath, reading a comic book, watching the sun rise, enjoying your favorite tea all alone before everyone else wakes up.

4.       Give yourself small, achievable goals, and really congratulate yourself as you accomplish them. We take ourselves for granted too much. When was the last time you really patted yourself on the back for cleaning the kitchen beautifully, or finishing the laundry, or being a great friend, parent, sibling, whatever. Don’t take yourself for granted. Really talk yourself up when you do all those things that seem tedious but they make life good. Heck, if you woke up this morning, didn’t cheat on your significant other, smoke crack, beat your kid, worship the devil, and bury the bodies in the back yard, you definitely have several things to pat yourself on the back for.

5.       Don’t take all your blessings for granted. Think about all the things you have to be grateful for, and list them one by one and really thank God for them.

6.       Choose to be happy.

“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” - Abraham Lincoln

Know that you have the ability to say I’m going to be happy today, and you can make it so. You have the power to choose how you will react to events and people. You can control your thoughts entirely. Direct your sails, and your ship will take you where you want. But you have to make the choice or else old habits, old programming, not of your choosing, will take over.

7.       Turn off the TV. It is full of unrealistic, dark, hedonistic, and scary images. The news obviously could depress anyone. They primarily only tell you the bad things that are happening in the world. But the bad things actually are far outweighed by the good. Even comedies and sitcoms are depressing. They show you unrealistic visions of young people with more money than sense who can afford large families, large homes, they have no student loans, they have no debt, they are either independently wealthy or only one parent works, etc. etc. Who lives like this? Maybe 1% of the population. Watching this kind of life, makes you on a subconscious and sometimes even on a conscious level doubt your own beautiful life. Working parents, shuttling around kids, pets, paying bills, cleaning up cat puke, repairing pipes, handing out Halloween candy etc.

8.       Appreciate the simple things. The simple life is magical and beautiful. Don’t be a perfectionist. Perfectionism makes the wonderfully simple and ordinary dull… but the simple things are truly blessed. Appreciate fall leaves, smile lines, dust on old furniture, cluttered books filled with beautiful stories…

9.       Recognize that all the blues you have in your life are not that bad relatively speaking. Give to a child living in poverty, or donate to a charity, and really be grateful that you have even a little to give when some have almost nothing. Search for Children’s Hospitals on Amazon.com’s wishlists… buy something for a sick child. You can send something that costs as little as a dollar.

10.   Get physical. Exercise. Garden. Dance. Make love. Hug someone. Go for a walk. Walk the dog. Tickle your child. Do some deep breathing. Stretch. Whatever. Use the body that God gave you.

11.   Have a motto, a philosophy, a worthy purpose, and follow it. Know that everything you do, is in line with that purpose. Know that you have a calling. What is God calling you to do?

If you are suffering from depression… go see a doctor. Get medicine. Seek therapy. Visit your spiritual guide, whatever yours may be… priest, pastor, minister, rabbi, whatever. You deserve to be happy.

“One must never look for happiness: one meets it by the way” -  Isabelle Eberhardt

“Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose.” Helen Keller (1880 - 1968)

“The foolish man seeks happiness in the distance, the wise grows it under his feet.” - James Oppenheim

“At the height of laughter, the universe is flung into a kaleidoscope of new possibilities.” - Jean Houston

I hope you have a beautiful day!

Go… be… happy!

True