Happiness is not in our circumstances, but in ourselves. It is not something we see, like a rainbow, or feel, like the heat of a fire. Happiness is something we are. John B. Sheerin

Photo by Beanworks

Consider your happiness today and the degree to which you let your circumstances determine your happiness. If you are like most people, it may never occur to you that happiness is more than a reflection of the things that happen in your life, the attitudes of those around you and the your degree of success --whatever you conceive it to be.


Happiness runs deeper than the fleeting emotions we feel as we react to the world. It resides in the very core of who we are. If you have trouble finding happiness, try looking within.

If you find yourself thinking that you would be happy if your financial situation changed, remember the work of Marci Shimoff in Happy for No Reason that showed us that once our basic human needs are met, money has no bearing on how happy we are.  

Today, I am grateful for renewed energy, for the bright winter sun and for dark winter skies alive with stars. I am grateful for eyes that see, ears that hear and feet that walk. I am grateful for cold crisp air to fill my lungs, for water to quench my thirst and for laughter that fills the air.

I am grateful for pencils, clean blanks pages and the desire to fill them in. I am grateful for wind chimes, pine cones and rocks.

I am grateful for family and friends who share my life, for pets that trust so willingly and children nestled snug in their beds.

And, I am grateful for you, dear reader, as you stop and share my day. May your heart be light and your life be filled with the happiness that comes from within.