Monday, March 6, 2017

Pursuing Happiness with Forgiveness in Preparation for International Happiness Day

The United Nations declared March 20 of each year as the International Day of Happiness. Below is a statement from their International Day of Happiness website, that explains that happiness, on a global scale, depends on much more that being in a good mood.


"Climate Action for a Happy Planet

What is the International Day of Happiness? It’s a day to be happy, of course! Since 2013, the United Nations has celebrated the International Day of Happiness as a way to recognise the importance of happiness in the lives of people around the world. The UN just launched 17 Sustainable Development Goals that seek to end poverty, reduce inequality, and protect our planet – three key aspects that lead to well-being and happiness.
The United Nations invites each person of any age, plus every classroom, business and government to celebrate the International Day of Happiness each year on March 20."

Here, in the United States, we are lucky enough to live in a country where "the pursuit of happiness" is considered a civil right. I suspect "the right to be happy" was left out because of understandable legal complications that might arise from citizens demanding that the government provide them with happiness. Yet, as the United Nations points out, governments are intimately involved in the happiness level of their citizens by their work in the areas of poverty, inequality and protection of our planet. It appears that having a Happy Planet is their theme for this year.

So, toward that end, and considering Earth Day occurs a month after International Happiness Day, I urge you to not only pursue happiness for yourself, your family and your community, but also for you planet. Although 7 possibly Earth-like planets have recently been discovered, I don't see humanity being able to move to any of them anytime soon.

To help you in these pursuits, I am going to be sharing links as I discover them, to point you in the Happiness For You and For the Earth direction. And if you have any ideas, or know of any community-based activities, let me know!

To start off,  Action for Happiness would like you to take a Happiness Pledge and get some Happiness materials. 

Live Happy offers this Happy Acts calendar of things you can do this month. Today, the calendar encourages you to forgive someone. That someone could even be yourself.

Forgiveness

Today I forgive myself
for not understanding
the life you lived
the pain you endured
that shaped your life
and the demons that pursued you.

Today I forgive myself
for not forgiving you
once I became an adult
experiencing life
learning the family heritage
in all of our blood.

Today I forgive myself
today I forgive you
mourning your loss
and the unfinished conversations
withheld in anger
regretted too late.

 ©2017 Noreen Braman



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