Four Lessons for Living a Happy Life from @English_Musings

My life lesson in 100 words...er, um, I think I may exceed the word count....

The kind of advice I would give someone? Well I'd turn to the mantras that keep me going on good and bad days. On good days, these words put a smile on my face and a little extra "oomph" in my step. On the hard days they keep me going and help me realize that life is that beautiful tension of opposites we read about in "Morrie."

So for me, these lessons are like a collection of sorts, some are my own, some are from books I've read, some are quotes I've encountered along the way. Each lesson is an interaction, each connection, a piece of a puzzle. By itself, a single piece might not make much sense, but when you put it all together, it becomes a clear snapshot--a landscape of beautiful meaning.

First, there's what I would call my "6 Word Memoir":

Always Swing as High as Possible. 

Those 6 words bring to mind the image of someone high up in the sky, with that feeling of exhilaration you get from swinging. It also implies going for it and not holding back. If you can do this most of the time, you'll be happy.

Second, is a simple mantra that says:
"Keep Moving Forward."
This one gets me through hard times and dark days. We all have them. Life is daily challenge. But if you just keep making small steps forward then you're headed in the right direction.

The third one comes from good ole' Dr. Seuss:
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." 
When I'm feeling less than positive about an interaction with a friend or family member, or even a colleague, I remember these words. They help me re-focus and realize that the people who care about me are going to support my thoughts, ideas and opinions, even if they are different from their own.

These few, simple mantras don't even begin to touch on all of the lessons life has shown me over the years. I'm a little wiser than I was in my 20's, but I know that life isn't done teaching me yet--far from it! Like writer Jack Kerouac said, "I have nothing to offer anyone except my own confusion."  Truth.

My fourth and final lesson is a small bit of advice from Albus Dumbledore (of Harry Potter fame) who said,
"It is our choices, Harry, that show us who we truly are, far more than our abilities." I simply couldn't end this post without including this line. When a teacher read that at my son's elementary school graduation, I actually cried. There's so much truth in it.

Finding truth in fiction. Yep, that's what I've been trying to do for a large part of my life. And this much I know is true. Reading changes lives. I'm living proof. If I hadn't believed in the stories I read in books, I just wouldn't be who I am today.

Thank you for being a piece of this puzzle with me these last 16 weeks. I think we came together quite nicely...how 'bout you?
~~Lisa

"I am in competition with no one, I run my own race. I have no desire to play the game of being better than anyone, in any way shape or form. I  just aim to improve to be better than I was before. That’s me and I am free" -- John Carlos, 1968 Olympian