I wonder...
The other day I was feeling down, and I just thought I could either think depressing thoughts and just cause my own misery or try to think of something positive in my life and then try to be happy. It was a weird thing because I decided I was going to change my outlook on the situation, and then be happy. I forced myself to smile, forced myself to change my thinking, and eventually my attitude switched. It wasn't a automatic switch, but it over time I could feel myself not having to force myself to smile or to think positive. I started to think about why it worked, and this was my conclusion.
1.I made a conscious decision to change my thoughts.
2. It was intentional, and it took effort and energy to smile, and change my outlook.
I always have heard that simply smiling can bring you some happiness. Maybe it was the muscles I was changing to smile instead of frowning, maybe it was the fact that my thoughts were changing from depressing ones to hopeful thoughts. I have no idea exactly why it worked, but it just interested me. It further made my belief that "happiness is a choice" belief stronger. I often hear people saying "I will be happy once I get a new job, find a boyfriend, am living away from home" or whatever people want in their life. But I know that we can be happy on the journey. Yes, life can be hard, but if we recognize that we can be happy in a moment of trial or affliction, and find something positive that will keep us going, then we will be able to find joy. I believe I am a hopeful person. And I think it is because I have learned this lesson. Life may not be what we want it to be sometimes, we don't get what we want whenever we want it. We may have a vision of our "perfect life", but the truth is we have to learn to love what we have. We have to learn to love in the situation we are in. If we cannot control the situation, and we think we are bound to be miserable, we are wrong. We are never bound to be miserable because we can consciously make a decision to be happy. We may not be 100% happy, but we can find something to be grateful for, and that can bring a smile on our face, and brighten a day a little bit to the point where we know everything will be okay. It reminds me of the statement "come what may and love it". We are sometimes put in situations where we can grow the most, and we don't know why we are put into them. If you are in that situation then evaluate what is making you miserable, once you know why then remind yourself that "happiness is a choice". You can be happy in whatever circumstance. Like Vickor Frankl, we can find happiness even when facing a harsh death, the Holocaust. He was able to find joy by serving others even when it was sacrificing his own daily ration of bread. Once we recognize this, consciously try to control your thoughts and change them to become more hopeful and optomistic. It may be hard, but it is worth it. We are not destined to feel hurt, sad, because we determine our own happiness.
1.I made a conscious decision to change my thoughts.
2. It was intentional, and it took effort and energy to smile, and change my outlook.
I always have heard that simply smiling can bring you some happiness. Maybe it was the muscles I was changing to smile instead of frowning, maybe it was the fact that my thoughts were changing from depressing ones to hopeful thoughts. I have no idea exactly why it worked, but it just interested me. It further made my belief that "happiness is a choice" belief stronger. I often hear people saying "I will be happy once I get a new job, find a boyfriend, am living away from home" or whatever people want in their life. But I know that we can be happy on the journey. Yes, life can be hard, but if we recognize that we can be happy in a moment of trial or affliction, and find something positive that will keep us going, then we will be able to find joy. I believe I am a hopeful person. And I think it is because I have learned this lesson. Life may not be what we want it to be sometimes, we don't get what we want whenever we want it. We may have a vision of our "perfect life", but the truth is we have to learn to love what we have. We have to learn to love in the situation we are in. If we cannot control the situation, and we think we are bound to be miserable, we are wrong. We are never bound to be miserable because we can consciously make a decision to be happy. We may not be 100% happy, but we can find something to be grateful for, and that can bring a smile on our face, and brighten a day a little bit to the point where we know everything will be okay. It reminds me of the statement "come what may and love it". We are sometimes put in situations where we can grow the most, and we don't know why we are put into them. If you are in that situation then evaluate what is making you miserable, once you know why then remind yourself that "happiness is a choice". You can be happy in whatever circumstance. Like Vickor Frankl, we can find happiness even when facing a harsh death, the Holocaust. He was able to find joy by serving others even when it was sacrificing his own daily ration of bread. Once we recognize this, consciously try to control your thoughts and change them to become more hopeful and optomistic. It may be hard, but it is worth it. We are not destined to feel hurt, sad, because we determine our own happiness.
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