Life is beautiful. I am grateful for this day and everyday. I see beauty everywhere and I smile. A lot. I often get asked how I can be so gosh-darn happy all the time. My response is that Happiness is a choice. I choose it everyday.
How do I do this? I was very lucky to be raised the way I was, I think my dad may be the happiest guy in the world. But I attribute my awareness of happiness as a choice to the Singing Substitute Teacher. I remember him 'subbing' our class when I was 14/15 years old. He usually brought his guitar, which the cool kids thought was dorky and used this time to goof off or skip out. But I listened very diligently, being a rule-following dork myself, and am very happy that I did because he taught me a lesson, not in science or in math - a lesson about happiness.
He came in one day and taught us that anger and happiness are not thought and feelings that can be caused by others. That someone cannot make you angry. That anger is a choice that YOU choose in reaction to a situation or another person's actions/behaviours. And so with that happiness is also a choice, and if you choose to be happy, to see the positive in even a bad situation, you can have a beautiful life.
This lesson has stuck with me ever since and when I get angry I often think of this day when the Singing Substitute Teacher came in and taught me an amazing life lesson in how to be happy 101. It's not that I don't get angry at all anymore, I just am more aware that I am the one choosing these thoughts and feelings, and when you are aware, it makes it easier to choose happy. Who doesn't want to choose and be happy? I can't help but think 'why wasn't this in the curriculum???'
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