Who owns your happiness?

Mom & Dad's place in
Penticton B.C.

My mom sent me a link this week to Life Lift, the Oprah Blog. The link she sent was about  teaching your brain to be happy through meditation.  I do not currently meditate, but have always been interested in starting. At the end of my Pilate's classes (time permitting) I guide my clients through a relaxation exercise where I have everyone lay still on their backs, eyes closed, focus on their breathing and then slowly work from head to toe relaxing each and every muscle. It always amazes me how I feel better at the end of the exercise, even though I was guiding them and not participating. I guess this could be considered a form of meditation?


The mind is an amazing force and I starting thinking about my happiness. Often times I blame others for steeling my happiness or being a road block to me feeling happy, but now after reading this blog and researching a bit - turns out I am in control of my happiness. It is my choice to allow others to influence my state of mind and I have the power to develop my own happiness. Wow! What a concept! So I am adding, Learn to Meditate to my goals list, starting with Mindfulness of Breathing meditation that I found through my research. I see this as starting point to finding my life balance. 


The more I read and linked from one blog to the next on the subject I wondered, what makes me happy? The answers to this question came to me quickly. My family came to mind first, my friends - all make me laugh and I feel happy when I am with them.  Teaching Pilate's and participating, I love the positive energy in the studio. Then things came to mind that I don't do anymore like dancing (not in a formal disciplined manner), painting, drawing... and why don't I do those things? The answer...Time! But is time really the answer or an excuse? Hmm... I don't know. This is one I am going to have to think about and report back. That Oprah...always making you think and stuff!  ;)