By Julie Green (Art, Photography & Writing)
A great list to live by: Seven Habits of Highly Happy People.
Good link, thanks for sharing that. this is something that is interesting me more and more now.
LikeLike
Me too, me too. What interests you most about it? Glad you enjoyed the read 🙂
LikeLike
I think my favourite was #1, choose good people to be around. I have few people I call close friends and I suppose I could really do with some more (for reasons I won’t go into here) but I just liked the resonance of that, having good, interesting people in your life you can laugh with, talk too and enrich your own life by having them in it, I like the idea of that.
Eat well, exercise and sleep is something that I really need to sort, I eat fairly well, 99% of stuff is made from scratch, I love cooking but there are a few downfalls that I have that I need to address. Exercise is something that is foreign to me at the moment; it is really something that I need to sort.
Currently I am generally a kind of person that focuses on wants and desires, I know it is a fault and I also know that even if I got those things that it probably wouldn’t lead to true contentment ( I do think it would make me happy, at least for a while but contentment is a different, deeper thing) I think I would find gratitude as described in that article difficult to achieve atm.
#4 lol, well, self-esteem issues prevent this at the moment. With #5 I think I am more like that than not, I do take note of surroundings etc and try to milk the moments as it were.
#6 time in nature is something that is on my to do list, I will be getting some walking boots and going out and about more often, I like being outside, I don’t even mind if it is raining as long as I am warm and cosy :).
For #7 I am not a very creative person, even in cooking I following the recipes to the T lol, I guess some habits are hard to change.
LikeLike
Choosing good people to be around is so important – I notice it more and more that if I have inspiring, encouraging, beautiful people around me my worldview is far more positive and well-rounded. People make us who we are! I love that idea, too. And I’m lucky for the people I have in my life and the new ones I meet.
Eating, sleeping and exercising well are undervalued. At least anecdotally, I have always noticed a huge drop in my moods when I do not keep these three things in very good check. What do you like to eat and cook? And what are the downfalls? Can I help you at all in getting started with your exercise? I try to work out most days of the week. A huge improvement in my life came with exercise and fitness. I think it helps a lot more than we realise. It’s great for the mind and body. Is there any exercise that you like doing?
Focusing on your wants and desires is not really unusual at all! We all do it, everyday. Why do you feel that way? Don’t worry about answering if it is too personal. I’m sure we all have wants and desires that do not always lead to contentment. We all deal with that. If it is to do with something that may not make another person happy, I’m sure you will find what you need to do and what is important for your life. It’s very vague so I’m not certain what to say about that! Can I ask why you find gratitude difficult at the moment?
I’m not sure why you have self-esteem issues, but I guess as this article suggests, it is great to treat yourself and others with love. As a personal aside, I feel that even when I am down on myself, the only way forward, to change or simply to create better situations for myself and others, is to acknowledge my imperfections, work with them by finding the source of what brings me down and face my insecurities and fears head on through love or at least self-understanding, and find what is good in me. Having good people around, keeping exercise, food and sleep in check, and being grateful, all really help with that journey. I’m sure focusing on the good parts of yourself will create a self you’re happy to know and I’m sure you’ll notice a difference in your relations with other people.
Awesome on #5.
As for nature, it’s amazing. It may sound a little hippie, but in many ways I feel being in nature can be a healing experience. Sitting around inside, cramped up, with artificial lights, and stuffy air is not exactly ideal and especially not 24/7. I think one of the most amazing experiences that I have had was after a very long bushwalk in the absolute heat of summer. The air was dry, the bush was orange and crisp, and I was thirsty. We’d been walking all day and just as we powered to the top of the hill to finish the walk when I’d really had it, the clouds opened up and absolutely drenched us with this most amazing, heavy, healing rain. There is nothing quite like it! Maybe it is all about letting go of this nagging wish to control everything around us when there is a greater world at work?
I don’t know that anyone is not ‘creative’ as such. I think everyone has things they like to do that may not seem creative on the surface, but they are something that gets that faculty going. If you like cooking, that’s creative, even if it’s by the book. Do you have some hobbies that you like to do? Or do you think you could find some?
Hope this is not overbearing or unnecessary, just interesting to chat. Cheers!
Best wishes
x
LikeLike
hi Julie, I’ve dropped a reply to your email if that’s ok?
LikeLike
Easier for us both I think. No probs 🙂
LikeLike
Piece in Chaos 
Leave a Reply