Happiness Is A Choice

"To get up each morning with the resolve to be happy... is to set our own conditions to the events of each day."

Quote by Ralph Waldo Trine (1866 - 1958) American philosopher & author

WOW... what a simply profound and true statement!

Each and every one of us is the maker of our own reality, so it is incumbant that we exercise our personal power within to CHOOSE how our reality will be.

When I was at the Haven Institute taking the Coming Alive program recently, the facilitator Al Chambers emphasized how happiness resides within us at all times (even if we don't know or feel it) and that we can access it whenever we want. I was tempted to balk at this , but decided I really liked the idea and would keep it as true... AND exercise it as much as possible.

Happiness is within at all times? Hmmm...

... but what about the times that I feel really upset or depressed?

Like the sunshine that sits forever in the sky, though covered temporarily by cloud cover at times, so is true of happiness. It sits in our being like the sunshine, waiting for the temporary clouds of our heart to clear.

(C)2007 Photograph taken by Carolyn J. Clarke, all rights reserved.

I took this photograph from an airplane window... amazed at the beauty. I hope it will remind you to choose happiness whenever you can! I'm practicing with you.

Warmly, Carolyn

http://www.life-balance-success.com/ BEST YOU eBook!

P.S. Thanks to Arlene for the beautiful necklace you see me wearing in this photo!

The Roads We Choose To Travel

Welcome and thanks for visiting!

Richard and I have been away on a driving holiday, taking four days "on the road" into the lovely Okanagan area of central British Columbia. What a GREAT time we had, seeing the sights, sharing plenty of happy dialogue along the way and even considering some future goals.

It was also a happy time to visit some of our beloved family, time to catch up on each other's lives and have casual time in their beautiful community of Vernon. Our "family batteries" got recharged and our playful spirits renewed.

Time away from the usual routine of life, I realize again, is vital to wellness and joy!

Taking time to step back from all of the day-to-day work and home pressures, the mundane and the stressful means that our experience gets freshly shaken up, providing an opportunity to be a little different and see things in new ways.

Taking time away allows for our minds to quieten, our worries to diminish and our sights to shift to a broader horizon. Following the long road ahead takes us into new communities, seeing people living differently, seeing new terrain and new possibilities to consider . We found ourselves "thinking outside the usual box" of our established lives and entertained some changes we'd like to make in our future.

Stepping out into new places and situations reminds us that we can live in whatever way we choose, we can become a more expanded person and that our current living condition is of our making. Choices appear when the statis quo is stirred up and, suddenly, life doesn't have to be as small as it was before. Life will be what we make of it!

Driving holidays are like placing wings under our feet... and the road will take us as far as we can dare to dream. I love being free to roam and adventure and discover new places, new people and, especially, ME! Travelling has always provided the best atmosphere for knowing myself anew.

How about you? When was the last time you "hit the road" for a little spontaneity and refreshment of soul?

I highly recommend it! These little jaunts need not cost much, but offer so much in return. I can hardly wait for our next driving holiday... perhaps at Christmas.


Warmly, Carolyn
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(C)2006 Photographs by Carolyn Clarke, all rights reserved