This post was contributed by a community member. The views expressed here are the author's own.

Health & Fitness

August -- Admit you are Happy Month

I am learning of all kinds of odd holidays. When I learned that August was “Admit you are Happy Month”, I asked myself:   Am I happy?  What makes me happy?  Can I decide to be happy? What is happiness?  All interesting questions to ponder at a quiet moment.

 

            For me lately, life has had its ups and downs.  I know I am not alone.  There are friends who have lost loved ones recently.  People I know have lost their jobs and are looking for new careers.  Some are just looking for any job to feed their family and pay their bills.  There seems to be enough suffering just in my own circle.  I don’t even want to think about the world! 

Find out what's happening in Medfordwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

 

            I remember a client many years ago who told me the story of how he lost his hearing.  He told exactly how the accident happened and how he spent months in rehabilitation working through his physical injuries and his hearing loss.  He was extremely angry about losing his hearing.  He was not happy about wearing hearing aids. 

Find out what's happening in Medfordwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

 

            I was sure that the accident was a recent occurrence based on the emotion he was feeling as he was sharing the story.  When I asked when the accident was, he told me it had happened 30 years before!  I was dumbstruck.  I had nothing to say.  I was in shock.  I realized that this man had been angry for 30 years and never come to grips with his loss.  He was not happy.  He was still angry. 

 

            Do I want to live my life with such anger if something really bad happened to me?  No, I decided.  I would choose happiness over anger.  It is not to say that I haven’t been angry for a long time over certain events in my life.  But, overall, I have made the decision to choose to be happy in spite of events.   I know that attitude can be a “game-changer”.  I have chosen to admit that I am happy. 

 

            I am choosing to figure out what makes me happy and make sure I include those activities in my life as often as possible.  I am deciding to be around people who make me happy and make me laugh.  Take time this month for you to be happy no matter what.  

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

The views expressed in this post are the author's own. Want to post on Patch?