finding a happy place

i went to borders the other day and you can imagine my excitement when i found the perfect book for me.

The Geography of Bliss: One Grump’s Search for the Happiest Places in the World.

it almost seemed too perfect for the situation we are in but it was 20% off and i figured a little gift could only cheer hubby up! well after going to Weiner’s website i must say i am looking forward to reading the book. my favorite line from his site is–Place. That is what The Geography of Bliss is about. How place—in every aspect of the word—shapes us, defines us. Change your place, I believe, and you can change your life.

find a happy place… find a happy place…

eating macademia nut pancakes on the lush island of Kauai… eating heart shaped pizzas and sipping wine with a great friend in venice. so good food and romantic locales…that doesn’t seem too much to ask.

life is good

i had dinner with caroline the other night and as usual left refreshed, happy and ready to make a choice. we are both going through a slightly similar situation in that our husbands are looking for jobs and have decisions to make on which way to go int their careers.

she was quick to remind me life is good. i have a husband who loves me and our children, we have a wonderful family and friends who are loving and supportive (for the most part).

do we stay or go?

it is worth risking a life we are satisfied with for something that has the potential of being exceptional?

happiness is a choice and that is the most important decision we need to make right now.

is ignorance bliss?

the other day i decided i needed to stop watching/reading the news. the last couple news stories that have left me wanting to play the ignorant card…a man holding his daughter captive in a basement and fathering multiple children with her for 25 years, mothers-fathers-friends enticing children and selling them into the sex trade industry, massive food shortages and starving children in ethiopia, a young boy having his arm run over because he stole food at a local market, and on and on and on.  alas– i can’t seem to forget these stories i have read about. i say stories because to say they are more  than that means that many many children are living these lives…daily. how can i ignore that?

recently i read  there is no me without you. a biography of a women who was one of the first ethiopians to take in orphans with HIV.  the author writes that HAREGEWOIN TEFERRA did not consider herself a hero because that would mean that not everyone could do what she did…but everyone can (when i find the book i will update this post with the actual quote).i also recently received this other link as a reminder that pretty close to home there are some people trying really hard to make a difference.

i am trying really hard not to rest in my ignorance, to stop expecting change. i need to demand it there are too many children hoping for a different life.