| ||
| ||
|
Happiness Information | |
|
|
Red Balloon of Happiness
Just when you think you know it all, some 17-month old child comes along and teaches you another valuable life lesson. Little Lady lost her favorite ball. There are few things that bring this 17-month-old more joy than playing with her favorite ball. And, of course, we want our daughter to have all the happiness she can get. So we headed out to the store to replace the missing ball. Little Lady enjoyed the outing, since there were so many exciting things to pull off shelves. And when we reached the ball aisle, she nearly jumped for joy. (OK, more like raced to the bin and started covering the floor with her joy, one bounce at a time.) As we left the aisle, Little Lady was happy and smiling. She held her replacement ball in her hands as we walked up to the cash. While waiting to pay, Little Lady caught sight of a red balloon that had obviously been used for some promotion, but was now wandering aimlessly around the floor like a lost puppy. If you think a ball can bring happiness, wait 'til you see the sparkle in the eye of a toddler who has just found her very own red balloon. Pure joy! Of course, she adopted the balloon immediately and clung to it all the way back to the car. Did she want to hold the ball? No way. She had a balloon! I couldn't help but marvel at how she valued the free, fragile balloon more than the sturdy ball I for which had just paid good money. Is there a lesson we can learn for self-actualization? Here are the possible lessons that immediately occurred to me: I figure at least two of these are valuable lessons that can add happiness to a person's life. Little Lady teaches me self-actualization lessons daily now, and I am learning to listen with head and heart. How often do we value the wrong things? The things that cost the most? How hard to we work to earn all that extra income to buy things we simply do not need. Anyone reading this probably has more than she will ever need, and yet don't we all want more anyway? Suppose we chose to have less of the things money can buy, and instead chose to have more time? More time to spend with our family? More time to spend with ourselves? More time to just be? What if we are giving up the red balloon chasing after the ball? My wife and I made a big decision a few months ago. We gave up the condo in the city for a big ol' house in the country. Our red balloon was space to raise a family in a much less noisy and stressed-out environment. The ball we gave up was the "glamour" of city living and a fancy condo. Assuming we can make a living from my book, my ezine, my web site and whatever other work-from-home projects I take on, we get to keep the red balloon. I invite you to look carefully at your life. Ask what truly brings you meaning. Then ask yourself if you could have more of that if you spent less time and effort on activities that don't bring you meaning but just fill your time. Enjoy your red balloon. About The Author David Leonhardt is the Happy Guy, speaker, author, and publisher of "Your Daily Dose of Happiness" at http://www.TheHappyGuy.com/daily-happiness-free-ezine.html. Visit him at http://www.TheHappyGuy.com
MORE RESOURCES:
Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Happiness is Yours for the Taking Happiness. The pursuit of so many. The ABCs Of A Great Life: J Is For Joviality Laughter, humor, a lighthearted sense of being - all of these are an important part of a well-balanced breakfast, er, life. Without humor, there is no hope. 5 Keys to Understanding Why Your Life (probably) Sucks! #3 The outcome of Reason # 2 is that you become your own worst enemy. That, in turn, leads on to Reason # 3 whereYou place more value on doing than beingIf you are at war with yourself, chances are you don't like yourself very much. Tap Into Wellness - the Secret Self Help Tool Your Doctor Doesnt Want You To Know About Everyone has issues with self esteem. It's no wonder then that bookstores have entire sections devoted to it. Conditions of Happiness: Happy vs. Unhappy - Do We Have A Choice? Everyone is in the process of seeking greater happiness. We are each involved in the search for feeling good inside our bodies. It Costs Nothing To Smile I like to be around positive people, people who tend to be happy, who look on the bright side of life. Far too many people walk around in what seems like a depressed state. How Good Are You? The demands of being a good person can sometimes mean sacrificing your own happiness.You may have been raised to be a good boy or girl; encouraged to be a good worker, to be a good parent; to be a good friend; to be a good citizen? And I'm not saying that this is wrong; what questioning the effects of this on our individual happiness and the impact on our country. Norman Rockwell - The Man Who Created His Own Reality In preparation for a class I taught today, I spent some time this week studying the life and works of American artist Norman Rockwell. His idealistic paintings, portraying the innocence of a simpler time, were featured for decades in publications such as The Saturday Evening Post and Boy's Life. Emotional Baggage We all have them. It has many faces. Happiness and Keeping Ahead of the Joneses Imagine that the Internal Revenue Service in your country claimed that you owe $1000 plus in tax arrears.You dispute this, and you challenge the tax people in court, but the court rules that they're right. Inner Peace Are you content and at inner peace?Or are you insecure and filled with worry?Imagine your life with more inner peace. Imagine it as fully as you can. Happiness Without Prescription As life and lifestyles speed up, so does the growing increase of the sense of longing, wandering just what else is there for ourselves, our families. Some people address their thoughts and feelings as valid and some do the exact opposite, they act as if those questions don't exist. Health, Wealth, and Love What is happiness? The dictionary defines it as "a state of well-being characterized by emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy."Like many dictionary definitions, this may be accurate, but needs to be more specific to be of practical use. The Great Opportunity I assume you want to be happier. Searching for greater happiness is a wonderful thing whatever level of happiness you are currently at. Letting Go of Anger and Awaken to Lifes Grand Aventures Anger can make us feel good and enlivened for a little while. When we are angry we are often feeling self-righteous, critical, judgemental and we have someone to blame for our own problems. A Shortcut to Happiness -- Vote with Live 8 Did you see any of the Live 8 performances in support of stopping poverty in Africa? Here's your chance to create a shortcut to your own happiness by voting to help others. You can support the creation of the happiness of survival for them. Are You Doing What You Love? Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. 10 Ways to Bring Meaning to Your Life My life always appears to be so hectic. It's as if I purposely overload myself with more things than I could possibly ever accomplish. Stop Sickies and Make People Happy At Work If you're an employer or a manager then work place absence is costing you money, inconvenience, and upsetting your customers. And as we all know, not all days taken off work are due to genuine sickness. The Secret to Staying Centered and Happy in a Troubled World Many of us are probably so used to crisis in the world that it has become a natural part of our mental scenery. We've grown accustomed to living in a world where acts of bitter conflict, unrest, and inhumanity are everyday things, and their constant contradiction with our essential values almost seems normal.
|
| home | site map |
| © 2006 |
