Sep 2, 2013

It Makes Me Happy

Happy Labor Day! It's been a big week, filled with sending my children off to school for the first time, hosting a second-hand sale at my house and of course juicing! The great thing about juicing is that I'm not in the kitchen for half of the day cooking and prepping food. Instead, I can do more of what makes me happy like reading, blogging, walking, playing with my kids, painting and thinking.

Here's one of the things that my new found time has allowed me to contemplate. "Do More of What Makes You Happy". To follow that creed you have to ask yourself a deep question, "What makes you happy?" I used to think that eating made me happy. I was so sure of this, that food was always my first stop when I wanted to create some happiness. But simply eating didn't make me happy - all it did was make me feel better...  for a moment.

All the things listed above make me happy because they are deeply enriching activities. Eating just for eating's sake is not enriching or nourishing. It's a bad habit and it does not create happiness. But I do love good, beautifully prepared and well-paired food. I love flavor and texture. I love the social aspects of sharing good food. All of this is what really makes me happy - not eating just to fill the void.

To do more of what makes me happy, means that I have to be mindful of what makes me happy. And it's extremely important that I not confuse what makes me happy with what masks the feelings of unhappiness. That is ultimately the difference between what is a healthy choice and an unhealthy choice. And it can be applied to most everything in life - relationships, food, sex, drugs, work... all of it.




The "I Did It" List

successful juice fast for six days
sent my children off to school without crying in front of them
met an article deadline at Houzz.com
hosted a home goods sale in my house and made some money
did a photo shoot for a family of four
took care of my children
made food for my family even when I wasn't eating any of it
made my bed almost everyday (except Friday)

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