We all seek Happiness. We all want to be happy. How can we find Happiness? Look inside yourself. What activities make us happy and give us energy? We must realize happiness isn’t found “out there”, we find it inside ourselves. Sit quietly, meditate and listen to our soul, it will tell us the right path to follow to have happiness. Be in the moment and be grateful for all you have, the little experiences, the people in our lives, they’re all there to make you happy. Remember, it’s found inside you and it’s different for each of us. Find you Happy.
For clear communication avoid Texting and Email because they are the least effective forms.
When you want to communicate your message and have it clearly understood there are two ways. The best way is talk live, face to face. If that isn’t possible the second best way is via video chat, such as FaceTime or Zoom.
This is so true. Someone’s seemingly harmless words can haunt you indefinitely. When you speak to others, choose your words carefully and lift them up.
Happiness can be found when you Find Beauty in Your Life. In today’s crazy world of out of control social media, politics, crime and anger, take time to find the beauty that is all around you. It might be a pretty cloud, a flower growing in the crack in the sidewalk, the genuine smile of a little child or a complement from a stranger. Some days you might have to look hard for it but it’s worth your effort. There’s Beauty everywhere when you slow down an look for it.
Life is a series of people teaching each other important secrets of life.
Over time, I’ve learned that everybody who enters your life does so for a reason. Sometimes it’s to help you learn a needed lesson. Sometimes it’s to help you navigate a tough time. And, sometimes, it’s to show you how not to be. They become an example of bad behavior that you shouldn’t repeat or the type of person to be careful of.
Think about all the people in your life. Does anyone stand out? What can you learn from them? At the same time, you entered their life for a reason too. What can you teach them just by being you? Be a special person to someone. Pay it forward.
Holding a grudge and not telling the person why is like spitting into the wind. Holding a grudge will destroy you. It heals nothing. It shows your real (poor) character. If you can’t forgive, don’t expect others to forgive you. Grudges block forgiveness and happiness. Forgive, forget, and don’t hold grudges. Holding a grudge is a sign it’s time to heal thyself. A grudge hurts you more than the other person.
Balanced Rock, Arches National Park, by John McFadden
Want to be Happy and Joyful? Put social media aside because Comparison is the Thief of Joy. You have a choice. Run Your Own Race! Become your Authentic Self. “To Thine Own Self Be True” Shakespeare. It’s up to you. Choose wisely.
Nature and the Mountains are Majestic. When your outside nature evokes feelings of grander, wonder and peace. After many years of being away from the ocean and mountains we drove from the High Desert of Utah to the Oregon coast. The closer we got I felt my mood improved. A sense of peace, wonderment, excitement and calm came over me. The same feelingsI get when going to the mountains of Grand Teton, National Park and so many more natural areas. For me it felt like coming home. I feel attached to mountains, coastlines, mountain meadows, peaks, lakes and streams. It’s a great feeling. It’s one I like to share. We should support organizations that work to preserve the natural world.
WWhen you feel stressed unsettled in your every day life go outside and claim your space in the world. Nature is calling you, listen to her call and go find her anywhere she is. Experience the Mountains, Ocean, Lake, Forest, Desert, a park in the city, wherever calls you.
The mountains are calling…(John Muir)
Enjoy and share your time outdoors and in natural.
As a college student and in my 20’s and 30’s I discovered the joy and peacefulness of hiking. I started hiking in the nearby woods, then pastures and cliffs above the Northern California Pacific Coast. Then I expanded to trails in our awesome National Parks. Needless to say, I was hooked for life.
I found that I could add Photography at the same time. There are so many places photo subject found on these walks and hikes. Many are hanging on my and others walls right now.
The greatest benefit is the way I feel when I return home. I find both my body and mind are refreshed. I have more energy and stamina, a quieter mind. Many times solutions to problems and questions I been struggling with now come easily to me.
So, if you want to jumpstart your like, start walking and hiking anywhere you can, in your neighborhood or in nature.
Seventy Years Loving and Helping One Another
Here’s a great article to inspire starting, https://amp.mindbodygreen.com/articles/heres-why-hiking-is-the-best-workout-for-your-mental-health.
See you on the trails, John
This Workout Can Seriously Improve Your Mental Health
Too often when we weigh the benefits of exercise, we tend to focus on the aesthetic. There’s a persistent pressure to exercise to look “good”—to whittle ourselves down to a smaller size and to shape our bodies in a way that pleases someone else. Not only can that mindset be detrimental to our physical health by encouraging destructive habits, but it also takes our attention away from a far superior benefit of exercising: the betterment of our mental health.
Fortunately, the tides are starting to shift (albeit slowly), and more people are beginning to use exercise to improve their mental health—not just as a means to a fitter end. And one of the best workouts for your mental health, as it turns out, is hiking. Here’s why.
How exercise improves your mental health.
If you’ve read anything about the benefits of exercise, there’s a 99.85% chance you’ve come across the word “endorphins.” Yes, those are released through exercising, but there is so much more to unpack when it comes to the positive impact exercise has on our brains.
“Exercise is probably the most underutilized antidepressant,” says Ellen Vora, M.D., a holistic psychiatrist and mindbodygreen Collective member. “It’s been shown in large clinical trials to be just as effective as antidepressants (if not more), and it has benefits like improved sleep, focus, cardiovascular health, and life span.”
There’s also a long list of mental health conditions that exercise can help mitigate, Vora adds, including depression, anxiety, insomnia, ADHD, stress, and bipolar disorder—all of which affect millions of people every year.
Any sort of exercise will, in theory, improve the state of your mental health and make you feel better. But if you can combine the benefits of exercise with the benefits of nature—like going for a hike—that’s when the true healing happens.
How hiking improves your mental health.
Beyond being an enjoyable solo or group activity, hiking combines two of the most potent antidepressants: exercise and nature.
“Nature is critical to our mental health,” Vora says. “Studies have shown that staring at trees and greenery can decrease stress and anxiety and improve your mood.”
And given that many of us spend our days toiling away behind computers and swiping for stimulation on our phones, getting out in nature, Vora notes, is more important for our mental health than ever.
“We as humans evolved while surrounded by and in tune with the natural world. In our modern existence, we’ve gotten so out of touch with that, spending our days in windowless cubicles and staring at screens. This disconnection with nature can make deep parts of ourselves feel alienated and very far from ‘home.'”
Hiking gives us the best of both realms—the natural and physical. As Vora notes, it reconnects us with nature while getting our hearts pumping and causing a burst of serotonin, dopamine, and GABA secretion.
So the next time you’re in need of an all-natural pick-me-up, first tell yourself to (seriously) take a hike, then gather yourself and go for it.
Ray Bass is the associate movement and wellness editor at mindbodygreen. Originally from the Philly area, she has a B.A. in creative writing from the University of Pennsylvania, with…
