by Wandra Najat-Felecia Chenault, MSW                                                                MamaSezWisdom

Life is not always easy but, it isn’t always all bad either. Fairness,  justice,  oppression, racism and inequity  are issues that  cause pain, sorrow and despair. None of these issues can be healed with band-aid words, sermons  or techniques.  I am not speaking about that here. 

The ability to feel some sense of happiness ( an emotion that involves a very complicated interaction between the environment and our brains, a process that results in the production or enhancement of brain chemicals affecting  how we feel, act or respond)  is necessary for our mental and physical health. Basically, we need happiness to be encouraged  and to keep going. So, our human ability to receive the rays of  the positive-strengthening. life-force which sustains us is a deal breaker in life.  Without a sense of happiness we will  deteriorate, disintegrate, decimate…just die.  Happiness is a mind-body-spirit connection.

Some days  –  even in the most difficult times  –  if only  for a moment,   a little “sun” can be seen through the “dark clouds.”  And although,  sometimes, in the middle of a “sunny day,”  a “storm” unexpectedly flares up, it is an amazing thing to watch the magnificence and the power of the natural wonders. There is power in both sunny and rainy days, and we can learn to live through both with grace.   

Some people actually do have it hard all the time – and I have noticed how often they are the very  ones who are  appreciative of the smallest amounts of happiness, able to find joy in the smallest of things. I am not suggesting we should want or settle for less than what we deserve or wait on the pie in the sky but,  what I am emphasizing  is  how it is unhealthy to  loose sight of the need to receive some emotional positivity,  some ounce of gratitude during  even the most difficult struggle because that positivity or gratitude will give you some happiness and it will help you gain strength to go on.  

It is important everyday to mindfully do something  that  makes you happy, brings you a sliver of joy, blocks out the craziness of the world or the distractions going on around you. It could be as simple as taking time to find a remote memory, where there was at the least a fleeting moment of hope or joy,  turning your eyes or ears  to the  sight or sound of nature, the quiet drops of rain, staring at the sky or  seeing the innocence in your child’s eyes.  And  also take time to savor (pause) at any moment where you feel good so that you can remember it and have something to focus on when you need a boost of happiness. 

Realistically and sometimes for those people who need it most, these “ happy”  moments may not be easy to find when inside the home or  outside are the sounds of ambulances, police cars, gunshots, helicopters, a baby crying, a pipe running  or the neighbors loud voices and,  at rest time there are thoughts of bills and other problems – instead of time for peace. In this situation, there is a little more work involved because you must create in your mind, visualize your own peace of mind, a place, a thought, no matter how unrealistic, you create what you want and as you visualize it,  you meditate on it,  until it brings a smile.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Wandra Najat-Felecia Chenault is a  life coach, inspirational speaker and author.