hello gentle friends,
It’s so easy to get swept away — under? — by bad news. We’re all living against a backdrop of global suffering: natural disaster, an ailing planet, war, poor and corrupt governance, mass animal and plant devastation. That’s hard enough, but on top of the reality of life on planet earth, most of us are also dealing the routine, closer-to-home challenges: physical health scares, mental health issues, work stresses, family tensions. And then there’s our natural tendency to exaggerate the negative and minimize the positive. It’s a lot.
This is the frame of mind I was in the other morning when I found myself reaching for Thích Nhất Hạnh’s Peace Is Every Step. I was searching for the chapter “What’s Not Wrong?” TNH lived through the suffering of the Vietnam War and still found happiness every day in order to “stay in touch with the healthy, joyful seeds inside us and around us.” His practice wasn’t about denying the suffering. It was about seeing all of reality. It was about keeping an open and loving heart in order to be with it all.
If Thích Nhất Hạnh was able to find moments of happiness in the midst of war, then I should certainly be able to do the same in the ridiculous comfort of my own life. This is the practice I’m playing with for connecting with happiness for no reason in order to stay open-minded and open-hearted to it all:
(1) Find a reason to be happy whenever you have a mindful moment. I’d like to say that I spend most of my day in mindfulness, but that wouldn’t be true. What I do have, though, are mindful moments. Those times when I remember that I’m not this voice or that voice, but rather the consciousness who is aware of — and cares for — all the voices. When you experience one of those moments, literally say the words: “Practice being happy for no reason.” The word “practice” helps incline your mind toward happiness even when you’re not feeling it.
(2) Notice how often your mind tends to look for what’s wrong. When you start this practice, one of the most dramatic things you’ll probably notice is how much of time you spend in “searching for problems” mode, even if you think of yourself as a positive person. This practice helps you to see life more clearly even when that problem-searching self takes over because you start to train yourself to calmly inquire whether there is something that actually needs to be addressed or if that “something must be wrong” sensation is habit energy. More often than not, it’s habit. You can let that energy go.
(3) Let the happiness sink in. After a few days of practicing, you’ll start sensing moments of happiness throughout the day — a cool breeze, a nice cup of tea, a playful puppy in the park. When you experience that moment of happiness, sit with it for a beat or two longer than is comfortable. This is an important step because our minds are so trained to minimize what’s positive. The more you let the good settle, the easier it is to sense it. Over time, you’ll establish a new habit energy of resting in a state of happy ease. And when you rest here, in happiness for no reason, you’re much stronger when life throws something tough your way. Don’t worry about the practice getting too easy, life will always throw something your way.
Give a try and let me know how it goes!
warmly,
alison
