Trying for Happiness

Posted on June 14, 2013 by Michael Kane

Trying for Happiness

 positivity

Man is fond of counting his troubles, but he does not count his joys.  If he counted them up as he ought to, he would see that every lot has enough happiness provided for it.  ~Fyodor Dostoevsky

Hello friends, I realize I’ve been quiet of late, well to be honest it’s been a hell of a month and it’s not quite half over.  Two friends have died, two truly wonderful, big-hearted people who I thought the world of and was blessed to know.  Even harder than their deaths has been watching their passings tear apart even more people I know, even forces of nature can be temporarily drowned in waves of grief and I’m watching that happen.  It hurts to see those you love in so much pain, even more so when you’re in pain yourself.  But as they say, when it rains it pours, two acquaintances have been diagnosed with new or recurring cancers; a family member has been diagnosed with two serious illnesses.   I’m also struggling with a significant relationship that seems all too suddenly to have changed and I wonder what I want from it and whether or not it will continue.

So my head is spinning and my world has been turned upside down and you might think happiness would be a distant destination right now, but it’s not.  You see my friends as much as the Ministry of Happiness may have helped you, writing these posts has helped me even more and I thank you for that.  Over the last couple of years I’ve talked so much about taking time to stop, to breathe, to be grateful for what I have and try to focus on the good things, to try to live every day as fully as possible, that these ideas and actions are here for me now that I need them.  I’ve also have some great friends demonstrate why they are exactly that, great friends.

I’m focusing on the good things, my house value is going up, I’m getting a payout at work, I’m grateful for my little nieces and nephews and all the happiness they bring, I’ve received some really kind words and compliments lately, I’ve been nominated for an award, found a really great job to apply for and I feel good about a couple of students I’ve been able to help out.  My garden is producing to the point that every day I’m getting to eat something I’ve grown.  It’s through working on the Ministry of Happiness that I’ve cultivated this attitude and you can too my friends, so even when things go wrong, have a happy day my friends. ~ Rev Kane

Some Other Posts You Might Enjoy!

Fear is Killing Your Happiness

Our Best Happiness Posts for 2015

Revisiting Some of Our Best Posts & Pictures

Readers Favorite Appalachian Trail Posts

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The wisdom of the Dalai Lama

Posted on May 29, 2013 by Michael Kane

The wisdom of the Dalai Lama

Tonight a little wisdom from the Dalai Lama, have a happy day my friends ~ Rev Kane

buddha

Starting the day

Every morning when I wake up, I dedicate myself to helping others to find peace of mind. Then, when I meet people, I think of them as long-term friends; I don’t regard others as strangers.

Examining our actions

The quality of everything we do: our physical actions, our verbal actions, and even our mental actions, depends on our motivation. That’s why it’s important for us to examine our motivation in our day to day life. If we cultivate respect for others and our motivation is sincere, if we develop a genuine concern for others’ well-being, then all our actions will be positive.

On youth and violence

It is vital that young people, the guardians of our future, develop a strong awareness of the futility of violence and war. They can learn from the examples of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr., that non-violence is the best way to ensure peace in the long term. Because the twentieth century was a century of violence, let us make the twenty-first a century of dialogue.

His holiness on aging

Every one of us is getting older, which is a natural process. Time is constantly moving on, second by second. Nothing can stop it, but what we can do is use our time properly; that is in our hands. Whether we believe in a spiritual tradition or not, we need to use our time meaningfully. If over days, weeks, months and years, we have used our time in a meaningful way – when our last day comes, we’ll be happy, we’ll have no regrets.

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Happiness Resources from Positive Psychology

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Michael Kane

Happiness Resources from Positive Psychology

positivity

Managing expectations can make you happier http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/your-brain-work/200911/not-so-great-expectations

Action for Happiness, an interesting site on changing the world for the better  http://www.actionforhappiness.org/

Who knew, Huffington Post has a happiness section?!  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/happiness

A scientific experiment Tracking your Happiness  http://www.trackyourhappiness.org/

The benefits of curiosity  http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200608/cultivating-curiosity

Finally a little humor, happiness and laughing  http://www.happinessandlaughter.com/

Have a happy day my friends ~ Rev Kane

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Deng Ming-Dao: Outlook

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Michael Kane

Deng Ming-Dao: Outlook

buddha buddhism taoism

I haven’t posted anything from Deng Ming-Dao in a while so here’s one of my favorite bits of his wisdom ~ Rev Kane

Spawned from a mountain cataract.
The long river surges to the sea.
Its torrents savage its igneous bed.
Yet one blade of rock twists it tightly.
Angry waves plow stone furrows into a maze.
And boats find it difficult to maneuver.
From this point, one man held off an entire army.
And poets found inspiration among the nests of eagles.
Along the Yangtze River is a high cliff.  The space for the river narrows dramatically at this point, and the water must backed up into a large bay before plunging through the difficult passage.  Rocks underneath are treacherous, and even today boats find it difficult to negotiate this stretch.

At the crown of the cliff is the Temple to the White King, in honor of a man from ancient times.  Numerous historical events took place her.  In medieval times, a famous strategist was able to defeat an entire army with a much smaller force.  Later, famous poets found inspiration from the high view of the river and the mountains.  In more recent times, the high cliff served as the headquarters for a warlord.

There are places in nature that can give people great power, but the character of the individuals determines whether the power is used for war or peace.  It is not enough to struggle for vantage points.  Position must be used with wisdom.

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Dalai Lama: Motivation

Posted on May 12, 2013 by Michael Kane

The Dalai Lama on motivation

Gandhi motivation

Gandhi – motivation

The quality of everything we do: our physical actions, our verbal actions, and even our mental actions, depends on our motivation. That’s why it’s important for us to examine our motivation in our day to day life. If we cultivate respect for others and our motivation is sincere, if we develop a genuine concern for others’ well-being, then all our actions will be positive. ~ Dalai Lama

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Happiness Rankings Worldwide

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Michael Kane

Happiness Rankings Worldwide

happiness map

happiness map

From time to time I see articles on worldwide happiness rankings and the United States bounces around in these rankings but we’re usually between 10 and 15th, they all have slightly different criteria, so I thought tonight I’d pass some of the links along for you to check out.  Have a happy day my friends ~ Rev Kane

UN Happiness rankings, US came in #11, Denmark #1

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2124553/Brits-come-18th-UNs-World-Happiness-rankings–Costa-Rica-Israel-UAE.html

A comparison of three indexes, once again Denmark rocking two of them as #1 with Costa Rica taking the other.

http://www.gfmag.com/tools/global-database/ne-data/10294-the-happiest-countries-in-the-world.html#axzz1rDjWATfW

A more in depth look at the world’s happiest countries, you guessed it, Denmark, the US is #14.

http://www.forbes.com/2010/07/14/world-happiest-countries-lifestyle-realestate-gallup-table.html

A color coded map of happiness worldwide and a lot of data and detail underneath

http://www1.eur.nl/fsw/happiness/hap_nat/nat_fp.php?mode=6

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Dalai Lama: Simplicity & the Paradox of our Age

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Michael Kane

Dalai Lama: Simplicity & the Paradox of our Age

Tonight the words of the Dalai Lama ~ Rev Kane

Buddha Nepal Buddhism

Buddha eyes

SIMPLICITY

If one’s life is simple, contentment has to come. Simplicity is extremely important for happiness. Having few desires, feeling satisfied with what you have, is very vital; satisfaction with just enough food, clothing, shelter to protect yourself from the elements. And finally, there is an intense delight in abandoning faulty states of mind and in cultivating helpful ones in meditation.

PARADOX OF OUR AGE

We have bigger houses but smaller families; more conveniences but less time. We have more degrees but less sense; more knowledge but less judgment; more experts but more problems; more medicines but less healthiness. We’ve been all the way to the moon and back, but have trouble in crossing the street to meet our new neighbour. We built more computers

to hold more copies than ever, but have less real communication. We have become long on quantity, but short on quality. These are times of fast foods but slow digestion; Tall men but short characters; steep profits but shallow relationships. It’s a time when there is much in the window but nothing in the room.

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Deng Ming-Dao: Clarity

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Michael Kane

Deng Ming-Dao: Clarity

The image is not upside-down sometimes to find clarity we need focus

The image is not upside-down sometimes to find clarity we need focus

Can you see a sound?
Can you hear light?
Can you unite your senses?
Can you turn inward?

What we are all seeking is clarity.  Forget about religious rationalization.  Forget about elaborate explanations.  What we all want is clarity.  What we abhor is ignorance.  Ignorance confuses us, brings us misfortune and sorrow, and makes us miserable.  If we have clarity, then we can live with equanimity.

It is a misconception that spirituality brings everlasting happiness.  There is no such thing.  Sadness still comes to the wise, but, unlike most people, their clarity of mind allows them to see beyond the temporal emotionalism of the moment.  They are farseeing, and so happiness and sorrow become the same to them.

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Happiness is Easter Treats!

Posted on March 31, 2013 by Michael Kane

Bunny Bread for Easter

Here’s a link to a blog about how to make bunny rolls and a Youtube video instruction  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lOXF9kg_xL8 And here is a bunny loaf

bunny bread

Filled Carrot Crescent Rolls

Personally ham salad makes more sense to me but whatever you like  http://www.hungryhappenings.com/2011/04/fun-idea-for-easter-brunch-carrot.html

carrot crescents

Chicken Egg Family

This is awesome – a Chicken Egg Family

chicken egg family

Chicken Heart Skewers

For those of you more talented in the kitchen, chicken heart skewers

ck

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Happiness & Wishes

Posted on March 30, 2013 by Michael Kane

Happiness & Wishes

coin founta

Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose. ~ Helen Keller

Wishes for happiness can come true and I can tell you how to make it happen.  Find a fountain, one you can sit at the edge of, even better if you can dip your toes in the water.  Bring a penny with you and sit cross-legged at the edge or dip your toes if you like.   Close your eyes and empty your mind, listen to nothing but the sound of your breathing and the water trickling in the fountain.  Feel the penny in your hand, roll it around, feel the surface of the coin, try to feel the shape of Abraham Lincoln.  Take the coin on to your thumb and flip it into the air, listen for it to hit the water, as it does, imagine exactly what will make you happy in your life, your happiness wish fulfilled.

Then, get up off your butt and start doing what you need to do in your life to make it happen.  Wishes are nice, a great way to focus yourself on your desires, but in the end we get what happiness we work for in this world.  I saw a great twitter post today that gave a definition of happiness that I really liked.  Happiness is having passion for that which will make you happy (your wish), plus the purpose to work for that wish in your life, and the gratitude for the happiness you have already have achieved.

Good luck on your journey my friends and have a happy day ~ Rev Kane

Other Posts You Might Enjoy!

Happiness and the Benefits of Gratitude

Fear is Killing Your Happiness

Happiness is a Choice

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