Happiness

Happiness has recently come to me in all kinds of forms. Here is my short list:

Successfully potty training the foster dog, "Chi Chi"

Having my house cleaned- by someone else

Hiking

Cooking for family and friends

My relationship with my parents

Renewing my commitment to the Orthodox Church


When I think about the things that make me happy, it all boils down to a few stability factors: emotional stability, physical stability, mental stability, and spiritual stability. With the exception of the money that I spent on having my house cleaned, none of the above things require money to be happy. And, the only reason I paid someone to clean my house is to have more time to spend with the people that I love and enjoy being around, so I don't consider that materialistic. Plus, having a clean house has been great for my sanity!

I topped off the end of August by throwing a party for my high school girlfriends and their moms. I cooked a traditional Greek cuisine and honestly had an amazing time. Having friends and family all combined in the same house, sitting at the same table, eating the same food, is something that fills my heart with contentment. I think it's the feeling of love, respect, admiration, and fulfillment that each of us brought to the table that night, and it excites me to have lifelong friends who I KNOW will always be by my side. Each of us girls come from such different backgrounds, have been through such different things, and we've all ended up in different places in life- but, ultimately, we all love and respect each other. It's nice to have that comradery.

Starting the month of September was a refresher for me. I felt a great weight being lifted- and not being haunted by the d-day month of August, is a nice thing. September makes me happy...the cooler weather, the warm colors, and the thought of the holiday season brings a sense of calm to my heart,

As I look at my life, and where I am today, I know that happiness comes from within. It comes from the place when my mom texts me with "I love you so much", it comes from the place when I get to see my best friends kids play soccer, it comes from the place when the foster dog sleeps as close to me as possible- when just months earlier he was scared of any human contact. Happiness is just a word, but that word holds the context of which every day should be observed.