Do you Want to Find Authentic Happiness?

If you want to find authentic happiness you need to take charge of your thoughts.  You begin by making a decision to be that person.  I know it isn’t easy!  But, the choice is yours.  If you decide to be miserable, angry or unhappy that is the choice you make, and that is exactly the person you are going to be.  It’s not the best choice or the best thing for you, so it would be better to start thinking in a new way and view things with a different perspective.

What is Authentic Happiness?

It is having a genuine awareness of the pleasures that you have in your life. You consciously savor those special moments with gratification and appreciation.  We can achieve this by being mindful of experiences that bring us joy.  Closing our eyes and a slow steady breath can help us get fully in-tuned with our pleasures.  Savoring every minute of that experience can lead to authentic happiness.

Also, we can find gratification in enjoying the beauty of nature, good conversation with someone,  listening to music, reading a book, painting, eating, watching a movie.  All these things make us happy because we take the time to appreciate them whole-heartily.

Most importantly we achieve authentic happiness when we share our personal strengths with others.  Personal strengths include the following: simple acts of kindness, love, creativity,  playfulness, perseverance, honesty, gratitude, faith, forgiveness, humility and patience. Everyone has different strengths and as we share any one of them it can bring us happiness.  Authentic happiness from the simplicity of the moment, the attention we give to the pleasures of life, and the sharing of our personal strengths.

A 61-year-old, tall, well-poised and very proud man, who is always clean-shaved, hair cut short, wearing his cool looking cotton blue pajamas, is trying to look his very best while sitting in his hospital bed.  Not always feeling well, but he always seems to muster up a smile for those that come and see him.  The nurse, that usually cares for him comes to give him his pain medication, turns to him and ask:

“Mr. Morales, why do you always have a smile on your face”?

“Hey, I got one more day, don’t I? I’m happy that I can get to see the sunshine once again.”  He states with humility and conformity.  The nurse looks at him with bewilderment but continues to listen.

“I know that I am dying, but why should I focus on death when I can focus on life!”

You see Mr. Morales has stage 4 liver cancer. His future is questionable and has some difficult times ahead of him, but tries to have a positive attitude. He continues…

“Being happy is what I choose to be, what I decide ahead of time, what I plan for myself every day!” This is the decision I make every single morning when I wake up. I have a choice; I can spend the day in bed recounting the difficulty I have with the parts of my body that are infected with cancer, or be thankful for each day that I still have.”

“Each day is a gift, and as long as my eyes open, I’ll focus on a new day and on the happy memories I have, on all the things that I have done, on the family and friends that I still love.  At this time in my life, I will make the best of it.”

Sadly, this is someone who has a chronic illness, yet he decided to make the best of the life that he still has. He chooses to be a happy person for one more day.  He has one more day to take a breath, to enjoy the cool morning air, as he watches the snow falling from the tree branches from his window. That is his whole world that he made into something special!  He is thankful and grateful for that!

This story was about my brother Tony, unfortunately, he passed away May 23, 2014. I have to say he was the most courageous person that I will ever know!   He was a fighter, a real tough guy! He taught me so much about life, especially about people, and in spite of what was happening to him, he still managed to keep a sense of humor.  That was his choice, his decision on a daily basis. Yes, he did it his way all the way until the end!

This is a great example someone sought to find authentic happiness during the worst of times. A person can make the best of what they have by developing a different perspective on life and appreciating what he had at the moment.

You Have a Choice, so Choose to be a Happy Person!

Begin to appreciate the good things you still have!  Create the happiness you desire. Think this way….

You can begin finding authentic happiness by the choices you make. Sometimes it may not be easy, but you need to take courage and make a decision to take action. Take charge of your thoughts and how you view each day.

Your mind is not your own if you allow anyone or anything to fill it with negative thoughts or feelings of hopelessness. You are not hopeless because your strength is within you.

It’s not a good choice if you’re choosing to program yourself for defeat and self-pity. It’s time to become the programmer of your own mind and create happiness. To be a happy person you need to first get beyond all those negative thoughts and feelings that are a part of you.

Begin today by finding the good in all of it! In all that is happening around you.

How much more can you do if you are healthy and you have a promising future that lies ahead of you?

Start looking at the glass as half full rather than half empty.  

A happy Person has a Positive Attitude

Hold onto that positive mindset filled with hope, a good attitude and happiness will soon follow, because you decided to have a better outlook on everything, to be that happy person.  Go ahead and  “Reach out and touch someone!” Go out and help another, give of yourself, count your blessing, appreciate the beauty around you, and the good people in your life.

Inner Devotion is the Key

This will accelerate happiness, as you recognize, as you choose, as you decide, to take charge of your thoughts and be a happy person. You can ask yourself these question to begin inner change.

What kind of person do you choose to be? 

What kind of day do you choose to have?

Are you going to take control or is the situation going to take control of you?

You need to give yourself a chance and no matter what, there is always hope, as long as you never give up! Keep love in your heart and in your life.

Remember…Love never dies it lives on, through your good deeds, and through those who love you wholeheartedly!

This article is dedicated to my brother Antonio Morales who I will never forget and love eternally!