C'MON -- GET HAPPY!

20 March 2016

I just learned that today is International Day of Happiness, and with all that is going on in the world, we certainly need it!

So let's make this a "happy" day.  I seem to complain so much on this journal that today should be a day to think about the happy things in my life

I was sitting with the wife of another critic at the opening night reception for a play we attended last night.  She turned to me and said "I think we both have sweet husbands."  I agreed with her.  We both tend to be rather intense "characters" and our husbands seem to put up with us and love us in spite of it.  I put Walt through a lot and he still lives with me, smiling and telling me he loves me.  I am a lucky woman.  That makes me happy.

Jeri left yesterday and spent last night in Oakland, making music with Ned, Marta, and their friends.  She flies out back to Boston today, and weather willing, will be home tonight.  She spent part of 3 days while she was here visiting with her grandma.  What a special relationship they have and how it makes me smile to see her militant positive attitude.  You can't be around Jeri and not be happy.

We had such fun at Todo un Poco the other night.  Seeing Marie and her success, watching how competently she runs her restaurant, reading the publicity on the walls and knowing what a positive force she has been in her community makes me happy, not only for her, but remembering all the good times we had with all those foreign students for all those years.  It was a golden time around here--not always wonderful, but always memorable and how happy I am that we had that experience.

Ned made the dinner at Todo un Poco such fun.  Ned can be such a joy to be around, both watching his relationship with Marta and then seeing how he goes out of his way to help someone (like finding ways to help Marie publicize her restaurant on the radio station for which he works).  He's an amazing person and I'm so glad that we are not only mother and son, but friends as well.

There are so many other things that make me happy.  Tom and his family make me happy all the time, watching the girls grow, watching what wonderful parents Tom and Laurel are (how did Tom learn to be such a great parent?).  I love my relationship with Bri and Lacie, now that I'm making an effort to write to them on a weekly basis.  And sometimes they write back.  I hope that if I keep this up, we will have the perfect way to keep a long-distance relationship active between visits.

The dogs are a constant source of happiness, watching them play together, having a routine that we have settled into each day.  I love how they run in from the living room to greet me in the morning when they hear that I am awake.

Our extended international family, both with the foreign visitors we hosted and now with the Compassion kids that we sponsor.  I have been receiving many letters lately and those I have been sponsoring the longest are now writing "real" letters, rather than essentially "I am fine, how are you, please pray for me" letters.  It is fun to watch our long-distance relationship grow.

And who could not be happy in this part of California today?  We have had lots of rain, the reservoirs, lakes and rivers are fillng up, the hills are a deep, deep emerald green and around town gardens are springing forth with a kaleidoscope of spring flowers in bright colors, especially the beautiful daffodils that are suddenly everywhere.

And finally, definitely not "least" in the happiness list, today is my Jounalversary.  I started writing Funny the World 16 years ago today and with this entry (#5840) am starting my seventeenth year of daily entries.  All of the people who have read this journal for so many years make me very, very happy!

I wish everyone a very happy International Happiness Day.  What is making YOU happy today?