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Written by Victoria
What are we here for? Perhaps we are simply here for the opportunity to become so happy that we no longer care what we are here for! (wrote my Astrologer today…..).
How many people are genuinely happy? I don’t mean happy because they have material possessions or the perfect wife/husband/partner. I’m talking about inner joy & peace.
Happiness is not a switch that you can turn ON or OFF at will. If it was, the Universe & all who live in it would be eternally happy. We would never use the OFF switch, because, let’s face it, who wants to be UNhappy.
We can choose to be happy & content or angry & dissatisfied.
No matter how hard I try, even in my present life of contentment, eventually, something crops up that makes me angry. And often it is the same scenario that makes me angry.
It’s people who make me angry.
People who are glib & who trivialize my existence & health. Does it really matter to the world if I live the way I want to? Is my being in pain really someone else’s business. It’s MY pain. It’s no one else’s pain. I deal with it the best way I can. It’s part of MY day (or night). It’s not part of someone else’s life, so why should they criticize it (or trivialize it).
Hang on a minute…………..
People can’t make you angry. Anger is about the way you interpret people’s words or actions. You make yourself angry. Anger is an emotion that your mind has produced. In fact, you can even be angry with yourself & your own actions – you don’t actually need another person to instigate this emotion.
The fact that you can make yourself angry supports the reality that it is your mind that is producing it (not another person).
The same goes with Happiness. You can experience Joy & Peace in your life, if you allow these emotions into your mind. And the more you practice them, the more easily it becomes a daily existence. You don’t need anyone else to bring you Joy & Peace. You just need to evolve & train your mind.
And it does take some training.
Life for an ICI (invisible chronic illness) sufferer is complicated & difficult. For some sufferers, it is extremely difficult. Every thought & action is hard work – not easy, not simple, slow hard work. With all this hard work in your life, it’s not easy to find time to Train your Mind.
How long does it take to train your mind? Like all new things which come to us – some things take a short space of time, some longer – depends how much you practice. The more you practice, the quicker the end result.
The sooner you train your mind to be open & receptive to Optimism, Happiness & Hope, the sooner it becomes part of your daily existence.
These positive emotions can only exist if you clear out the negative emotions that are competing for space – Pessimism, Unhappiness & Despair (& Anger).
I guess I’ve got to do some more training & study. After all these years, I’m not sure that I worked hard enough at my lessons.
No matter how often I sweep up the negative emotions & put the Angry Trash out for the weekly rubbish collection, it keeps coming back.
Anger still occupies a small space. It inhabits a shadowy corner, hiding, biding it’s time, ready to multiply & eat away my positive space – IF I give it the chance.
I guess I’ve got to find a bigger broom & practice sweeping (as well as filling my mind with the Positive, so there’s no room left for the Negative to lurk).
PS. OMG, I’ve just spied Peter the Possum walking along my side fence & it’s only 1.45pm Sunday afternoon – now THERE’s a creature who knows his own mind – he studies & practices mindful walking & stalking – even outside working hours (night).
(picture added by cort)