Why Montana Makes Me Happy

So, my happiness project Wednesday blog didn't happen yesterday.  I took a nap instead.  

Waking up today, seeing an inch of snow covering the lovely green ground, I had to hit the happiness reset button.  Sometimes you have to realign your attitude if you truly want to be happy.  As Gretchen Rubin says again and again in her book, "It's EASY to be unhappy.  Being happy takes effort."  I wonder if it snows in May where she lives?

Why I Love Living in Montana

• If there is a blizzard in any of the 10 months in which a blizzard can easily happen, rest assured if you get stranded by in a ditch, someone will surely help you.  You don't have to be afraid of the guy in the 4 X 4 who pulls you out, nor is he so afraid of you he drives right by.
• If there is said blizzard, your neighbor will probably shovel your sidewalk if you happen to sleep in.  (You'll do the same for her next time.)
• If you are driving on a dirt road and meet a passing vehicle, the driver will wave at you.  Nope, you won't know them; it's just something that happens.
• Even though winter lasts approximately 10 months, with occasional 70 degree days in March (obviously designed to test your endurance), the sun shines almost every day.  We live in one of the sunniest places on the planet.
• When humans finally get on board with clean energy (hooray!!!), our wind energy is going to power most of the U.S.  Seriously.  
• I love that people here will still barter grass-fed beef, for say, birth doula service.
• Even though Montanans have often been known for being red-necked, and bigoted (not to mention the home of the Unibomber and Freemen), we also have a deserved reputation for live and let live and tolerance.  Really.  We may not be the most diverse state in the union, but we try.  And we've got a long-standing historical ethical of respect for hard work and diverse opinions.  Who elected the first woman in Congress?  (who happened to be a pacifist, no less.)  Look it up.

• What makes me really happy about living here?  I feel safe.  I can see the sky.  I love the wide open prairie where you can see nothing and nothing and nothing forever.  And our mountains are among the most beautiful, spiritual, sacred places on the planet.  Our rivers are among the cleanest and wildest left anywhere.
• You can get lost here.  Physically, sure.  But metaphorically.  It's a place where you can reinvent yourself and we'll let you.
• We are home to just about no natural disasters.  No oil spills (ok, that's not natural anyway), flooding is rare, tornadoes are rarer, no hurricanes or tsunamis (those scare the crap out of me), we're a major earthquake zone, but we never seem to have any (knock wood).  Speaking of wood - forest fires are no fun - but back to happiness.  Can't remember the last time one of our cities experienced a riot either.
• And finally, it's a place that snows in May.  Just to test your love.  I pass!  I love you Montana.  Thank you for taking good care of me.  I'll try to do the same.

Happy Wednesday

This Wednesday I am reflecting back on what brought happiness this past week.

Three Things

1. The almost full moon shining in through the window upon me last night as I lay trying to sleep after a sweet day.  It reminded me of a favorite poem,
   The sky was lit
   by the splendor of the moon
   So powerful
   I fell to the ground
   
   Your love
   has made me sure
   I am ready to forsake
   this worldly life
   and surrender to the magnificence
   of your Being
   
   - Rumi 
2. Writing in our family holiday traditions book.  I started this book at Christmas time to record the little ways we celebrate uniquely as a family.  Yesterday's entry "For Katy's half-birthday, April 25th, pick the first rhubarb and make something yummy."  This time it was a crisp.
3. The way the puppy cuddles me every morning.  At first she would jump up into bed and get very rascally - nipping, paws in the face, barking at me to get up and play.  But like all Lindbergs, now she has learned the lovely art of sleeping in a bit and she snuggles up quietly and snoozes for a few more minutes with me.  The rest of the day, when I find myself using expletives in front of her name, I try to think of this nice time together and her true nature.  And mine, happiness.

One Idea

  I was born early, had both my babies early, am known for being impatient, and despite all that, still manage to be late for just about every meeting, class, engagement I attend in life.  (SIGH.)  It makes no one happy in my life.  It makes Mike completely insane.  This weekend I somehow managed to make us late for a date, for Pete's sakes.  Henceforth, it is my goal for the coming month to be 5 minutes early for absolutely everything.  Today I got up 30 minutes earlier, thinking just maybe that would help.  And throughout the day I revised what I thought I could accomplish in a couple minutes.  If it could possibly make me late, I won't do it now.  Today's report:  Bella was on time for dog agility.  The first time all year.  Yay me.

Blue skies, shining on me.....may they shine on you as well.

My Happiness Project

For my book club this month, one of the ladies chose the book, The Happiness Project, by Gretchen Rubin.  As a huge believer in personal happiness as a way to global happiness, I was an enthusiastic reader!  Gretchen embarked on a year long quest to see if she truly could increase her own happiness and along the way found that she also increased many others' joy too.  Each month she focused on a particular area of her life, her marriage, her daughters, her work, having more fun.  And she came up with personal resolutions she tried hard to follow each day, complete with a check-list.

In the spirit of increasing my happiness (and maybe yours), every Wednesday I will be posting about 3 things that make me happy + 1 method I'm trying to find more happiness + 1 photo.  We'll just call it Happy Wednesday (a great day right in the middle of the week - named for Norse god Wodin!).  Maybe exploring creativity will be a good beginning project!

Three Things

 1. Waking up and knowing I have a whole day ahead of me with my girls.  Posted on my bathroom mirror, a little watercolor picture of a boy with his chickens, with the words:  "Waking up this morning, I smile.  Twenty-four brand new hours are before me.  I vow to live fully in each moment and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion"  ~ Thich Nhat Hanh.

2.  The sound of birds outside my window.  We have 3 bird houses and they get busy and hatch babies every spring.  This renewal of life and the enthusiasm of the chirping cheers me greatly.

3.  My 13 year old daughter's innate compassion.  One sweet example:  noticing a little 5 year old friend was needing some one on one attention, she woke early this morning (not her favorite idea), finished her chores and piano, and took her to the park to play.  Just because.  

One Idea

I started running with my younger daughter (age 11).  I love to run but don't always make the time or often overdue it and exacerbate an injury.  But this time I've got a partner, we've got a goal (Sweet Pea 5K run) and we play an imagination game while we run (sort of an Avatar fantasy - I am currently a Nymph who controls the weather and communicates with all living things - fun stuff for the imaginatively stifled!).  This fills my resolutions to have more fun, get better exercise, get more sunshine, stretch my creativity and do something with my daughter that she loves.