Happiness in "hard times"

We are certainly in the midst of newness ... times when we are being challenged to go beyond what we've known, what we've counted on, situations we may have thought were there to stay and faced with new situations we never thought we'd encounter. If we think about it, when we're in times we call "good" (we're enjoying ourselves or being in a satisfying love relationship), we don't want it to change. When things aren't going the way we'd like them to, we may then want them to change, but only if they change to what we want.

But take a closer look at one of the basic concepts in the Option Institute program, Calm Amid Chaos, "change is continuous". If we weren't scaring ourselves about what could happen (bad, of course) or weren't believing that change was less solid and less safe than what we know, we might really embrace what is inevitable - and welcome our friend, change, as we take steps into new directions, using happiness as our flashlight. Actually, depending upon our attitudes, same or different can be viewed as always good for us.

Let's see the changes that are coming our way as open doorways to new opportunities for self improvement and to re-create our lives in ways we would have never even entertained before ... instead of worrying or believing it's not going to be good for us. The fear will only make it less possible to be creative, think outside of the box, and believe we can go for what we want. If we are saying to ourselves, "Okay, Universe, bring it on", it won't even feel like "hard times". Rather, we will be jumping into an exciting adventure.

I will be on this adventure with you, like on a roller coaster, with my arms up in the air, screaming with joy as we round each hairy curve.
Wheeeeeee! Here we go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!