Originally Posted by
ny biker
If you have a happy life with the ability to solve problems by making a few changes, you are actually quite lucky.
Yes, indeed. One of my closest friends lost her relatively young husband to a horrible illness, and is now on her own in trying to cope with having a very mentally ill adult daughter who has tried every conceivable program and medication with limited effect. There really are times when all of the available tools and the attempts to have a great attitude are not enough, and people cannot always control what happens or solve every problem. It is harder for some people to find happiness than others, and luck can play a big role.
Things that make me happy: Being outside. Animals. Birds. I feel very lucky in my friends, who are smart and funny and sane and care deeply about the world. Lucky to have my husband whom I still consider to be the coolest guy I know. Music. Books. Our cats. Other people's dogs and children. I like kids a LOT--they sort of renew the world for me (nothing like hearing a baby laugh with delight, right?). Art. Hiking, especially in Glacier Park. Traveling. Tandem rides that are hilly. People who care about the world and try to do their bit to make it better.
"My predominant feeling is one of gratitude. I have loved and been loved;I have been given much and I have given something in return...Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal, on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and an adventure." O. Sacks