Bliss for BEGINNERS Here are a few of the things I learned:
Pick up the pennies. Imag- ine you’re walking hurriedly down a street on your way to an important meeting, with your head full of worries and a heavy bag on your shoulder. With your eyes downcast, you notice a penny on the sidewalk in front of you. Would you pick it up? If you’re like I was, the answer would definitely be “no.” In that state, it would take a dollar or more to stop me. Likewise, in our daily lives, we tend to pass up little opportunities for joy in the hurry of the moment. We may put off enjoying life until we can have a vaca- tion, reach a goal or just have some time. Ten, out of practice, we may actually find less enjoyment than we anticipated. Yet, if we simply acknowledge and enjoy the beau- tiful, funny, or heart-warming moments of life, those pennies of pleasure in the “bliss bank” can quickly add up to a happy life.
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...in our daily lives, we tend to pass up little oppor- tunities for joy in the hurry of the moment.”
Here are some of the pennies I’ve picked up lately (enjoy them vicariously with me!): a sky of fuchsia-tinged clouds at sunset (while putting groceries in the car on the way home to make dinner), glowing blades of sunlit grass (while mowing the lawn), my son comforting his sister (while I washed dishes), the smell of clean laundry (while folding that laundry), the sensation of warm water pouring over me (while taking a shower), nestling into my bed and into my husband at night. Writ- ing down or keeping a tally of the “pleasure pennies” that you enjoy throughout your day is tremendously helpful if your bliss bank is empty, as mine was. How many pleasure pennies can you pick up today?
Be in the moment, and
seize it! My father has advanced Al- zheimer’s. He can no longer retrieve mental details about his past life, his five children, or even what happened earlier in the day. He lives almost entirely in the moment. What he sees before him fully occupies his mind and informs his reality. And because he
10 INSPIRATIONAL WOMAN MAGAZINE
made a habit of happiness throughout his life, what he sees in each moment can bring him joy. He sees a piece of art and appre- ciates it thoroughly, as if for the first time. He hears music and exclaims at its beauty. He sees a friend and repeats again and again how good it is to be together.
Unlike my dad, I’ve had to learn to be in the moment. Often, in the midst of doing one thing, I’m already thinking about the next thing, or worrying about next month, or last week. Moments that could be full of joy are frequently unrealized because my thoughts or heart are elsewhere. Choosing to be in the moment — to fully appreciate who and what is around me — invites me to seize the moment and enjoy it or create joy in it. It opens the doors to bliss. I, too, can exclaim, “Tis is wonderful!” “It is good to be to- gether!”, and “How beautiful!” when I make the effort to be in the moment, and seize it. Some blissful moments I might have missed lately include: rocking and singing my son to sleep, skipping and holding hands with my daughter after picking her up from school, pointing out a beautiful tree to my children as we drove by, laughing with my husband as we talked over dinner. What are you grateful for in this moment? How can you create joy right here, right now?
Simplify your expecta- tions,
mor because less is
ered that I had to let go of some things, as well as seizing others. One of the main rea- sons my shoulders drooped, my eyes dulled, and the corners of my mouth were heavy was my expectations of myself and others. Te weight of what I thought I “should” do was so overwhelming, I had no energy to do it, much less to have joy in it. Learning to eliminate the word “should” from my vo- cabulary, and with it the unrealistic expec- tations of myself and others, lightened my load immeasurably. Now, instead of a mile- long list of things I should do, I have a short
e. As a beginner at bliss, I discov-
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