Your Zen Approach to Happiness

Michael Beckwith said, “A bad day for the Ego is a good day for the Soul.” It took me a while to figure out the Zen Approach to Happiness. Have you ever felt like you wasted a beautiful day by pushing your way through, and by the end of the day you were frustrated that you couldn’t make it happen? Last week I had one of those days. Some days I have to pinch myself: while waking up and feeling our kitten’s silky fur on my chest as she’s purring her heart out; while feeding the hungry bellies of our five kids with breakfast at the kitchen table; while walking in the woods with our 2 dogs and our 4 cats who faithfully follow us in a warm, happy parade; while opening my laptop and having access to the whole wide world. The promise of the new day seems magic. But why is it that some days, when it’s time for bed, our ‘inner judge’ is upset and tells us that we should have worked harder, done more, and accomplished something significant? Last night was one of those nights I was critiqued harshly. It was awful. Indeed from the beginning of the day I was in the pushing mode. And after too many cups of chai tea to get ‘in the mood’ to make something happen (whatever that was), there was still nothing accomplished by the end of the day. It felt like a wasted Friday. Do you ever have those days when you’re impatient and want to make something happen, and no matter how much harder you push it’s just not happening? It’s like the Universe sabotages your dream. It made me think that some days we may rest and not have to do anything significant. Maybe some days we approach life differently and we can just BE, nourish ourselves, hang out, enjoy, and have fun. Maybe some days we don’t have to go anywhere, and we have all day to get there… In those moments, we create space for the Universe to make the magic happen. Because surrender activates success. When waking up this morning, I pinched myself. Why? Because my heart is full again, and my mind is filled and focused on gratitude for all the miracles that show up right in front of me. This is our life, and if we don’t appreciate it and purr our hearts out today, when will we? What is the promise of your day?