I GIVE MYSELF PERMISSION TO BE HAPPY

Welcome to EVERY SINGLE DAY OF YOUR LIFE. Today, and every day, I GIVE MYSELF PERMISSION TO BE HAPPY.

This should go without saying, but you deserve to be happy. But how can I be happy, you ask, when there is so much pain and suffering in the world? How can I allow myself to feel joy when others have none?

The answer is so simple. A world full of sadness needs more joy.

I can tell you, first hand, that this is easier said than done. What happens when the pain and suffering is close at hand? What happens when it befalls family and friends? How can we be expected to smile and laugh when those closest to us suffer? This feels like just too much to ask. The guilt and conflict that we feel can be overwhelming if we even think of finding or pursuing our own happiness when it eludes the ones we love. So, I ask you to consider these questions to help you gain perspective.

1/ Are the things that bring me joy attained by causing pain to others?

2/ Will being unhappy myself make things better for anyone else?

3/ Is it possible that the things that bring me joy may be shared to help others?

Take a deep breath in. Breathe into your heart. Feel the air travel throughout your body. Feel your shoulders relax. Feel your face relax. Allow a small smile to form on your mouth. Repeat today's mantra: I GIVE MYSELF PERMISSION TO BE HAPPY. I GIVE MYSELF PERMISSION TO BE HAPPY. I allow my happiness to be seen so that I may share it with those around me. I smile easily and do my best to spread joy with those around me. I am worthy of happiness. I remind myself that what I feel will be felt by others, so I choose to feel love. I choose gratitude. I choose joy. Breathe out.

Why should you feel guilty for bringing more to the world of what it needs most? If you want to make the world a better place, give yourself permission to be happy.

"Darkness does not drive out darkness, only light can do that" - Dr. Martin Luther King jr.

And sadness does not drive out sadness. Don't just give yourself permission to be happy, demand it of yourself. Find a way to find joy - and spread that shit everywhere. We need it. We need you.

With love.

Namaste