If you have a heart to heart with anyone on the planet and ask them what they really really want, they will answer that they simply want to be happy. Those that are truly happy, have stumbled upon the recipe for happiness. It is a recipe. Some of the ingredients are hard to find. You have to look deep within. The cooking time may very depending on if you have to thaw out some of the ingredients. You can certainly add things to the pot that you enjoy the taste of, but the basics are listed below.
Flexibility: As you move through your day, allow yourself to shift with the situations that arise. Look for the bright side! When you find yourself in an uncomfortable situation, ask yourself how it is making you feel and how you can positively shift it to make you feel better.
Pleasure: Seek pleasure in every moment with awareness of future consequences. Always choose the most nourishing choice for you and others. Think of your body and the planet as an "other". Ask yourself: What is the short term and long term consequence of the choice I'm making? What will it do to my body, my family, my relationships and my planet? Do something that you enjoy every day. Find a creative outlet.
Power: Take control of your life. Accept responsibility for everything that is going on in your life right now. Own it. Know that you can change anything that you don't like. Be clear as to what you want your life to look like.
Gratitude: Practice gratitude daily. Let your first thought and last thought of the day be "thank you". Be grateful for the good stuff and the bad stuff. Honor your suffering with gratitude and look for the lesson in the suffering. Express gratitude daily to loved ones, co-workers and the people that you engage with each day.
Compassion: Be kind to others. When someone is not pleasing to you, ask yourself why they are the way that they are. Walk in their shoes. The mean clerk at the grocery story may be a single mom working two jobs. She may actually need you to be kind to her because she is at her end.
Knowledge: Know yourself. Spend time sitting with your thoughts. Meditate. When emotions arise, study them, acknowledge them and commit to shifting through them so that your lessons might be learned more quickly and any pain associated with the emotion can dispell more quickly. Ask yourself the harder questions of life. Why? Why do you think the way you think? Why do you feel the way you feel? Why do you choose the things you choose? Why?
Service: In every situation, ask "How can I help?, How can I serve?". We are all here to serve each other. Through service, you will find your life's purpose. Be the person that gets the door, clears the table and kindly listens to other's stories.
Enjoy the dessert!!
Namaste, Pamela
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