Daily Mood Quotes - December 15, 2011

 

Daily Mood Quote 

Day 223 – December 15, 2011

“I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it's not the answer.”

~Jim Carrey

Yet, the belief persists that “money makes you happy.” In reality it causes the greedy to become greedier, the selfish to become more selfish and those who want to want more. All based on a fundamental belief that happiness is externally generated and requires money, or “stuff,” or even the cooperation of other people. Grandma Anna Mary Robertson Moses, a renowned American folk artist said, “life is what we make it, always has been, always will be.” So, once you get above the basic needs of food, clothing, shelter (Maslow's hierarchy of needs) happiness is pretty much a self-generated thing. Happiness is a choice, I promise you, buying that “one more thing” will not guarantee happiness, because once that “need” is fulfilled, there is always another one to immediately take its place.

I have often told my children two things; Number One: money doesn't buy happiness, it provides you with peace of mind.” With it , you don't have to worry about paying your bills, losing the roof over your head, or putting food on the table, but it won't, can't, make you happy. That said, happiness comes from within, its a journey you choose to undertake. Number Two: “Do what you love and the money will come.” Yes, this usually requires an education and although many educated people right now are unemployed, I still believe ultimately the education will work out to their advantage. It will provide choices, opportunities and open paths that may have never been available had they not gained the education. The key is to make sure that you really do love the work, not the money. Big difference. All careers require work, dedication and continued effort to yield good results, both internally and externally. So many people, far too many, both young and old I have met are doing jobs they loath. They hate the people they work with, they despise their boss and feel trapped by life's circumstances, just because they feel the “need” to “keep up with the Jones'” and they have got to get the 60 inch surround sound, blu-ray disk, high definition home theater experience....in a one bedroom apartment the size of a shoe box. What's wrong with this picture? I do have a question here, after you purchase what you want, how long does that happiness last? Ten minutes, an hour, a day, a week, a month, what?...

One of the reason this particular observation came about today is because yesterday I overheard a mom say to her daughter, “If I buy this for you, will it make you happy?” The daughter emphatically replied, “Yes!” Really, until the next big thing, latest, greatest, must have comes out, right? I think its the wrong message being sent here. Happiness is a verb not a noun; it requires action and effort, not placation. That two minute excitement you feel when you buy something you want is not happiness, temporary gratification doesn't last. Have we become a nation of “stuff junkies” can't wait until our next shopping trip, the next big score? As I recently said, I have seen people garages jammed packed with stuff and yet to read their faces and body language, the misery radiates off them. It's unmistakeable and really quite sad.

In the movie Bruce Almighty with Jim Carrey (Bruce) and Jennifer Aniston (Grace), Bruce is a news reporter with a beautiful girlfriend who adores him, a dog, and a nice apartment. He's successful by every measure of today's standards. But he wasn't satisfied or happy, because he wanted the anchor job and more, more and more and he blamed God for his unhappiness. So, “God” (portrayed by Morgan Freeman), granted Bruce ultimate power. With this “ultimate power” Bruce helped himself, “righting a few wrongs” as he put it, but he only helped himself and no one else, and you know what happened...well I recommend you see the movie, it is awesome. But until you do and to briefly sum it up, he wasn't happy at all. Not even ultimate power can “make someone happy” that's just the way it is.

I guess my point here today is, happiness has nothing to do with “stuff.” I believe that's important to remember in this holiday season and every day of the year. There really is only one path to happiness and it is internal. We have to make the choice to be a happy and work at it daily, it isn't a given, it doesn't come in a box or even in another person or deity. It's a habit that we cultivate and grow; by not only “doing what we love” but by doing life from love. Like Danny Kaye said, Life is a great big canvas, and you should throw all the paint on it you can.”

How will you paint happiness today?

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Daily Mood Quote - October 23, 2011

 

Daily Mood Quotes

Day 172 – October 23, 2011

“The best cure for an off day is a day off.”

~Frank Tyger

Yesterday, I took the day off. It was time to disconnect, become unwired, break free of the grid, or what is also known as the daily grind. I logged off for a day. Over the past six years, I have logged many, many hours on the computer. First with school work, research projects, papers, communications with fellow classmates on projects and presentations, work, The Daily Mood Quote, and family and friends... E-mails, Skyping, Facebook, Linkedin, YouTube; where does the madness end? It doesn't unless you say E-N-O-U-G-H!!! Much like Bruce Nolan (played by Jim Carrey) in the movie Bruce Almighty, when he said, “Bruce giveth and Bruce taketh away. Don't like it? Megabyte me” as he unplugged the computer. All right, I wasn't that harsh, and I did not unplug the computer. I just walked away.

I did that yesterday, I said enough and logged off for a day. Here's why, the weather was nice, I remembered I had a family and I was having a menopause day of gargantuan proportions. Every time, I looked at my computer, throwing it out through the sliding glass door crossed my mind. That's never good, so when my husband asked me what I was going to write about, I walked away. Ipods, Ipads, cell phones, apps, laptops, desktops; they all made me twitch yesterday. It was time for a change, even if that change would be short lived. So, I watched a little TV, the movie Die Hard (one of my favorites, I like Bruce Willis - as an actor). I also watched Christmas Vacation with Chevy Chase and some of the World Series with the Texas Rangers and St. Louis Cardinals. I took some time to go to Wal-mart to pick up a few items and just enjoyed the day unplugged. Not even a cell phone call. It was nice.

I think Matthew Broderick said it best, when he played Ferris Bueller in Ferris Bueller's Day Off, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” and if you don't step away from technology for a moment, you're missing a lot. Even the great Andy Rooney took a day off. And so that's done; I can get back to addressing the needs of digital reality. The need for total immersion in real reality has been satiated for now.

The point is, well you know there's always a point... Anyway, We all need to step back away from whatever has our attention the majority of the time; be it the computer, the internet, a group of associates, a job, a religion, or anything that absorbs time like a sponge. Then take a deep breath and appreciate the little things we so often take for granted. No matter where you might be, there is beauty and peace of mind to be found if we disconnect, open our minds and hearts and let the best parts of real reality in.

How will you enjoy your day today?

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Daily Mood Quotes - September 30, 2011

 

Daily Mood Quote

Day 150 – September 30, 2011

“Live in the sunshine, swim the sea, drink the wild air...”

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

The only thing missing is “walk in the rain.” I did that this morning, it was pretty cool (about 50 degrees) with a spitting rain and moderate breeze. And although being hit in the face with spitting rain can sometimes be somewhat annoying, today for some reason it wasn't and I enjoyed the walk. Henry David Thoreau said “An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day.” At least Emerson and Thoreau agreed on that! I have to also agree. Granted, it was a short walk (seeing the doctor once for a sinus infection is fine, twice is just plain stupid) and I didn't want to get a cold along with a sinus headache. I think I foresee the purchase of a treadmill in my future. I really don't want to lose any of the gains I have achieved from exercising thus far. At my age those gains actually mean something. It gets tougher and tougher to regain lost ground.

So, how does one live in the sunshine,when its overcast, swim the sea when you're 1000 miles from it and drink the wild air when your having an “ozone action day” and saturated by pollen (well at least that , the pollen, has really been “wild” this year)? I'm not sure, but I suspect living each day to the fullest might be a good place to start. It's Friday and I can't think of a better day to start reengaging in life. Smile as often as you can, appreciate the opportunity to embrace life and then embrace it, and sometimes when you have the opportunity, leap into life without looking (but only if your having fun, please don't do anything dangerous). In the movie Yes Man, Carl Allen (played by Jim Carrey) is a character whose life was crushingly disconnected and routine. He had a boring job and very few friends, until he attended a meeting that challenged him to say “YES!” to life. In that movie Terrence Bundley a motivational speaker (played by Terence Stamp) said a very insightful thing to Carl Allen (Jim Carrey) “You cant audit life my friend.” And so it is, “live” life, wrap your arms around it and find the good, even on the windy, rainy, cold days. There is no substitute and no better time to start than now.

How will you “live in the sunshine” today?

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Daily Mood Quote - September 4, 2011

 

Daily Mood Quote

Day 124 – September 4, 2011

To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one's family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him.

~Buddha

Yesterday my mind was rattled because of the amount of homework and short deadlines for school projects. It was surprising at how difficult it was to focus or even think about anything other than the assignments that were pending. To be fair, I allowed other distractions to take ascendancy this week, putting my homework and reading on the back-burner. I won't do that again, because the stress of that event caused a horrible headache. Better time management skills are in order this week.

This morning, I woke up feeling calm and peaceful, a good night sleep was exactly what I needed after the stresses of yesterday. I was amazed at how I let things back up to the point of feeling overwhelmed. At one point I ask myself, if I could handle grad school? What was interesting was, once I sat down and began to clear the clutter from my mind, things fell into place as assignment after assignment was completed. First the paper, then the reading, then the analysis of a case study and before I knew it my homework was under control. That's a good thing because I was really concerned. I did realize something though, in grad school, you really can't take a day off. If you do, you fall behind and it's hard to play catch up. Especially when your an adult learner and have other responsibilities in your life.

They say wisdom comes with age, I think wisdom comes from mistakes and lesson learned.

Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek, but a means by which we arrive at that goal.” I believe this because peace isn't inherited, or a gift one can give to someone. It's not something we are born with, nor is it something we can buy. Peace is only something we can achieve if we choose. I've made the mistake of “back-burnering” an important project (procrastination) and it rattled me. So, in my case, peace begins with getting the things I can control, under control. I'll admit that there are so very many things that are beyond my control and quite frankly I wouldn't want to try to control them. In the movie Bruce Almighty, God (played by Morgan Freeman) said to Bruce Nolan (Jim Carrey) "Triumph is born out of struggle faith is the alchemist. If you want pictures like these, you'll need to use some dark colors." Those pictures are having the things I can control, under control.

I can control my thoughts, my actions and reactions and how I prioritize things in my life. Lesson learned and a little wisdom gained. From now on, I won't wait so long. My husband says that “the big lessons in life almost always carry with them a little bit of discomfort, (dark colors) so that they stick in our memory.” It's just the way we have developed as a species. Well the headache and panic of letting my work get behind is more than enough “discomfort” than I wish to experience again, so I won't soon forget. I like the “peace” that comes with that bit of wisdom. We all have the choice to control our actions and reactions, and to choose peace in our life instead of panic. It's up to each of us to make that call. I choose peace, at least in what I can control.

Will you choose “peace” today, or let panic get in the way?

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Daily Mood Quotes - August 12, 2011

 

Daily Mood Quotes

Day 101 – August 12, 2011

“Trust is like a vase..once it's broken, though you can fix it the vase will never be the same again.”

~Unknown Author

A recent event caused me to pause and wonder, do people know the damage they create when they choose to lie to someone? Several weeks ago, I saw a brief snip-it on television about lying, it was a topic on The Early Show and the point being made was (I'm paraphrasing here) “everybody lies, it has become the norm in business, in relationships and in day-to-day living.” Really? That's the norm?

In 1992, there was a movie Straight Talk with Dolly Parton who played Shirlee Kenyon, a talk radio show host, who gave life advice to callers. It's been a long time since I've seen this movie, but there is one phrase I do remember; she said to a caller, “sounds like your living your life so crooked, you have to screw your socks on.” I guess what I'm saying here is, if you tell one lie, usually you have to tell another to cover up the original lie and so on and so on... Where do the lies stop? My mother had a very strict policy about lying (at least lying to her). It was simple, “Never lie or I'll beat the crap out of you.” Well, being the strong willed child I was, it was a theory I tested and let's just say, theory verified. Now, I understand there are the fabricated stories about Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny and they have their time and place. Those tall tales are generally meant to provide a vehicle for a larger moral. But, when an adult chooses deliberately to deceive another, that is a “whole 'nuther kettle o' corn” as they say around here.

Here's what happened: During a conversation with a friend we've known for nine years; a question was asked and the truth was deliberately omitted, (same thing as a lie) passing the buck to the next guy. It was deliberately omitted to avoid an uncomfortable and Inconvenient Truth. A week later, the truth came out (it always does) and I was heartbroken. It wasn't because our friend lied, but because we had respected and trusted him. We had known him for nine years...who does that? As Friedrich Neitzsche said, “I'm not upset that you lied to me. I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you.”

Lying is like acid, It slowly corrodes the spirit of the liars and those being lied too. Even a little white lie can begin to pit the surface of any relationship. Perhaps in time with wear and enough polish it can be made to look new again, but it takes so much more effort than just telling the truth up front. Big lies (like the one we encountered from our friend) are a much stronger acid, they not only burn through the surface of the relationship, leaving a blemish that can never be removed; they often cut deeply into the core and create irreparable damage. Even if it was meant to avoid confrontation, the damage is still done. Trust is never regained.

In the movie Liar Liar, Fletcher's (played by Jim Carrey) son Max (Justin Cooper) made a birthday wish, “ I wish, for just one day, Dad couldn't tell a lie.” Here's my wish, “I wish for one day, people would think before they choose to lie.” Make no mistake lying is a choice and there is no getting around that “truth”. I will eventually forgive my friend for lying to my husband and I, but the friendship is now permanently damaged and trust is forever lost. What a high price to pay.

Will you think before you speak or avoid the truth today?

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