Unlimited Ways to Spread Happiness and Love
Share your best ideas and inspiration. Have no fear - be as silly or sappy as you want to be!
Five Easy Things You Can Do to Spread Happiness
Smile!
- When you see a handicapped person or child - especially someone in a wheelchair - look them straight in the eye with a smile and say "Hello." People often dismiss disabled people and will talk right over their heads to their companion or caretaker. It's so rude and demoralizing! Treat all people like people, and you'll spread happiness as well as setting a great example for others.
- When you get great service in a restaurant, write a little note to the server telling him or her what they did to make you feel welcome and special - and bump up the tip, too!
- Call someone just to tell them thank you for something they did, the example they set, the way they treated you.
- Notice something special about everyone you encounter - and mention it! A great haircut, infectious laugh, great taste in clothing or jewelry, etc.
- Really listen to someone. When someone wants to talk or share something with you, go into ultra-attention mode and absorb every word they're saying as well as think about what they're saying. Tell yourself your job right now is to listen, not talk, solve, answer, debate. Just listen.
One Life to Live
Much love to give
The Daffodil Principle is a great example of this idea. Here's an excerpt from the book, "The Daffodil Principle" by Jaroldeen Edwards:
On the patio, we saw a poster. "Answers to the Questions I Know You Are Asking", was the headline. The first answer was a simple one. "50,000 bulbs," it read. The second answer was, "One at a time, by one woman. Two hands, two feet, and one brain." The third answer was, "Began in 1958."
For me, that moment was a life-changing experience. I thought of this woman whom I had never met, who, more than forty years before, had begun, one bulb at a time, to bring her vision of beauty and joy to an obscure mountaintop. Planting one bulb at a time, year after year, this unknown woman had forever changed the world in which she lived. One day at a time, she had created something of extraordinary magnificence, beauty, and inspiration. The principle her daffodil garden taught is one of the greatest principles of celebration.
That is, learning to move toward our goals and desires one step at a time-often just one step at time-and learning to love the doing, learning to use the accumulation of time. When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things.
The Daffodil Principle
Amazon Price: (as of 12/27/2009)
The book says it better than I could:
"When we multiply tiny pieces of time with small increments of daily effort, we too will find we can accomplish magnificent things. We can change the world."
Happy Dad
Ah, last daughter married!
Check out the look of bliss here on my dad's face. I'm the youngest daughter of four. All three of my older sisters had been married for years, and even my brother had been married for many years by the time I hit 35. Just seeing his contentment here in this photo makes me happy, but there's more to this story as you'll see.
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Thanksgiving was approaching, and I was going over to my sister's where the rest of my sisters would be visiting as well. I had met a nice fellow who seemed like a really nice, wholesome, good guy - a nice friend to have. We had been emailing back and forth for months sharing stories, history, etc.
Well, when I shot a quick email over to him to let him know I'd be out of touch for a few days, he wrote back a nice sendoff with good wishes and mentioned he'd probably be volunteering at the Salvation Army for Thansgiving. Although there was not even a hint of self-pity or even loneliness, it was pretty clear this guy was going to be all by himself on Thanksgiving with no family around him.
Now in my family, being alone - and/or away from the family - on any holiday is a cardinal offense. Thanksgiving and Christmas are the motherlode occasions of the year. My dad spent four vital years of his youth in Korea alone for the holidays and vowed neither he nor his family would experience a holiday alone if it could be avoided.
So I called this fellow up and left a voice mail. "I have a crazy idea," I said. "Give me a call back if you get this message within the next few hours."
He called back.
"I have this crazy idea," I repeated. "Ummm, what do you think about joining my sisters and me for Thanksgiving? We could get to know each other better, perhaps the beginning of a good friendship..."
So he accepted, greeted me the next day with three bouquets of flowers, and now the remainder of this story will have to be read on my other lens: How I Met Prince Charming (aka CutiePieHusband).
I set out to do a small thing make someone's holiday a little better, and I ended up being the one whose life was change - for the far better - forever.
Share Your Ideas
How have you made someone's day a little (or a lot) brighter?
What kinds of things have you done to make someone's day brighter? Share your ideas, get new ideas, let us know how making someone happy has increased your happiness, productivity, success, relationships, or other experiences important to you.
More Happiness to Come
This is just the beginning. Check back for updates with suggestions, stories, and how-tos on seeing the little ways you can make big changes in people's lives.So, in the meantime (see below)...
