In the last couple of years, I have become a real person, more of the sort of person I want to be, instead of who I thought I was. If you follow me. In any case, the following list might sound like balloons and puppy dogs, but doing these things have made me a happier, more content person with whom people feel more comfortable and relaxed.
- Smile at babies. Often, you will be rewarded with a miraculous smile of innocent joy.
- Look for opportunities to smile and say "please", "thank you", and "excuse me" (bus drivers, shop clerks, bank tellers, etc.)
- Pick up garbage on the street.
- Every day, stop for five minutes on the street and look for something to enjoy (trees, architecture, colors, old couples walking together, etc.)
- Stop everything else for five minutes, and watch your children (whatever species ;-) ), no matter what they are doing, and memorize the moment.
- Remember to think back on all of these things, occasionally, just for the pleasure of the memory.
- Feed street cats.
- Read something every day.
- Phrase everything in the positive. The more positive influence to which you are exposed, the more positive you will be.*
- Avoid "impolite" words; surely, you have a larger, more interesting vocabulary. Ugliness breeds ugliness. The nastiness thing I say is "flip, flip, flip".
- Avoid berating yourself when you make a mistake; saying "oops" covers most everything and allows you to move on.
- Relinquish control over everything and everyone except for yourself. You will save yourself a lot of grief. (Is it really life-threatening if he leaves the wet towel on the floor?)
- Cleaniness can be next to obsession, especially if it takes time from almost anything else more satisfying (like watching your children).
- My feet hurt one day, and then I looked up, and saw someone in a wheelchair, and part of my pain dissipated; remember to be thankful.
- Correspond with friends.
- Pay attention to how your face feels. If it feels tight or unhappy, close your eyes briefly, take a breath, release, and open your eyes and smile.
- Children are happier if their parents are happy. Example, example, example.
- Do you really need to be there so fast?
- Step aside for older people and baby strollers.
- Wait at the traffic light.
- Be patient in bank and store lines.
- Time is all we have. Use the seconds well.
- Get into the habit of dancing. It will displace depression and dispel hardship. - Rebbe Nachman of Breslov
- Everywhere you look, there is something to see. --Talmud
- Do it now. Do it right. Poof: it's done.
- Think hard, work smart (i.e., "measure twice, cut once" and "a stitch in time . . . ", etc.)
More to come, but consider the list already here . . .
*This is the only place on this page where the word "not" appears.
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