I AM HAPPY
Saturday, June 11, 2011
today’s Musing written and published from Cranston in south- east Calgary, near the Bow River valley
On weekend mornings I find I have time - perhaps my readers do too - to listen to some music. I choose pieces I like that connect, in some way, to my mood. I hope you enjoy these . Moby Extreme Ways , Herbie Hancock Jazz Fusion Cantelope Island , Carlos Santana & Eric Clapton Jingo , John Lennon Stand By Me , Sergio Mendes and Brazil 66 Fool On The Hill , Natalie Merchant Singing Old Poems
Morning walk: 11C/52F, steady breeze from the north pushing a darkening overcast to cover the entire sky with rain threatening – you can just feel it in the air; bird traffic and noise at the lagoon was inspiring to me while Gusta trotted along, oblivious to all except mysterious smells that distract her.
I don’t know the right answer – or if there is a real need for one; I find by reading the words of wise folks their profound words warm me; and some thrill me, for if these measures are the tests, then I am profoundly happy and, I expect, will always be.
I’ve been spending some time lately; some might think it too much but I wonder if it is not nearly enough time – on the subject of happiness. I am happy. My quest is not one of trying to find something which is missing, but to understand better what happiness is, and to find more meaning in it.
What makes you happy? What doesn’t? And how do those answers fit with the reality of your day-to-day life? I’m not asking you, I’m asking myself. In the course of mulling, I’ve consulted some wise old folks for their thoughts on this subject:
‘Happiness is the meaning and purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence.’ – Aristotle … but he didn’t have an i-PAD, so can we trust him?
‘We tend to forget that happiness doesn’t come as a result of getting something we don’t have, but rather recognizing and appreciating what we do have.’ – Frederick Keonig . . . great advice, but I haven’t been able to find out if Keonig owned an SUV or a vacation condo in Maui
‘If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things.’ – Albert Einstein . . . words sounding wise, but considering his wretched personal life and having done his best work before he was 30 gives me little comfort his words fit all. I’m sure he was happy, in search of a single unifying theory he never found. Then again, maybe there is happiness in the quest but it sounds more like resignation to me. Happy resignation though – and I guess that can work.
‘Believe me! The secret of reaping the greatest fruitfulness and the greatest enjoyment from life is to live dangerously.’ – Friedrich Nietzsche . . . such happy thoughts from a man known for so much darkness. Dangerous doesn’t have to mean reckless, but it seems to be he opposite of riskless.
‘Don’t compromise yourself. You are all you’ve got’. – Janis Joplin . . . such wisdom from youth so sadly wasted
‘It is not easy to find happiness in ourselves, and it is not possible to find it elsewhere.’ – Agnes Repplier . . . seems like the words of a gal who has been around, and around, and around the roller-coaster a few times.
‘It’s pretty hard to tell what does bring happiness. Poverty and wealth have both failed.’ – Frank McKinney Hubbard . . . such simple wisdom and comfort like thinking OD means on deposit rather than over-drawn.
‘A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery while on a detour.’ – unknown … I would really like to meet this person ‘unknown’ because I keep finding evidence of his/her wisdom everywhere I look
‘We have no more right to consume happiness without producing it that to consume wealth without producing it.’ – George Bernard Shaw . . . a great man who should have run a country or something.
‘Happiness comes of the capacity to feel deeply, to enjoy simply, to think freely, to risk life, to be needed.’ – Storm Jameson . . . great words of comfort in the calm, or the storm
‘It isn’t what you have, or who you are, or where you are, or what you are doing that makes you happy or unhappy. It is what you think about.’ – Dale Carnegie . . . this one strikes home just a little more than some of the others, and deserves to be pasted to a wall somewhere I frequently look
‘Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.’ – Mahatma Ghandi . . . well, yes, but what would we struggle for then? … or maybe that’s his point, that we wouldn’t
‘A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.’ – Lao Tzu . . . clearly, he didn’t have a watch – or need for one
I am, and will continue to be a searcher – for truth and understanding of myself and the world in which I try to make my way. I find in these profound words of great men and women who have thought more, found more and understood more than I ever can – the message that seems, as I see it, to run through their collective wisdom is that we are far better off, and far better at running our own lives than we, our harshest critic, tend to allow.
Regrets we harbour are, I think, not a measure of unhappiness, but a measure of mistakes we don’t wish to repeat as we continue to pursue happy life.
I’m not done.
I have so much more to do.
But, if I perished overnight I would not regret any part of my life or feel I’ve missed an opportunity at happiness.
I am happy.
Mark Kolke
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Comments Received:
June 10 - ICAN
Thought provoking words, indeed! Ideas, they say, is the only thing that matters. As long as they are acted upon. Comfy/secure/easy - words associated with state of mind may not yield satisfaction in the long run due to inaction. Active minds, bodies and spirits lead to fulfillment and happiness. As pointed out, there are many types of riches. And, some of them can be found by using 'I can'. Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Regards, PH, Calgary, AB
Outstanding Musing this morning Mark! How many of us would actually take the step of "being all we can be" if the financial worries were taken away from us? What difference can we make? It starts with the decision "I can". It does. A Lot of little differences are like compound interest, they pay off over the long term as they accumulate. Good stuff there!, RA, Calgary, AB
