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What makes you happy? How are you trying to bring joy into your own life?


RakshaTheCat

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For me, these are small things, like eating something good, walks around nature, enjoying decent view. I'm always trying to make things like that permanently present in my life. And also, positive interactions with people, like yesterday for example, helping a kid start their own video game project gave me plenty of joy 😸

 

I'm always looking to try more ways to enjoy life, so I'm curious, what are yours?

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Lady Constellation

I settle down with a good book and make sure to, while I'm generally a very busy person, find time to calm down and have a break from my rush-rush-rush schedule.

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I personally adore being really creative and really enthusiastic about it. And helping other people, even with tiny things, always puts me in a better frame of mind so I try to help out even if it's not in the best interests of my agenda. 

 

On a deeper note, I feel like often we get so lost in trying to get stuff done, and trying to get going, and trying to get through stuff, that we forget to look back and appreciate life. We often tend to see negative things as more "important" and fun things as "selfish," even though I'd say pursuing your personal truth is the best thing you can do for yourself. Many western cultures (and some eastern ones too) are a little too obsessed with being "busy" that people forget to enjoy life. 

 

I hope this thread gets people to realize and appreciate a few things :)

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I have to immerse myself in fictional reality for a minimum of an hour a day or I can't cope. By that I mean like, thinking, if that makes sense? I go nuts if I can't immerse my brain in whatever fiction I am currently obsessed with on any given day. I've had this as long as I remember, but I couldn't have joy without it. I can't actually see or touch fictional realms (though I'm working on that) but they still feel more real to me than the 'real' world.

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I'm all about just taking things at my own pace. I've tried to keep up and move at the speed of other people's (my family's) expectations by constantly working and attending school full-time at the same time and just ended up making myself mentally ill. I did it for 6 years. I refuse to now. I take one class, I work full-time partially because I like my job and partially because I like the money; I read books and fan-fics as I want to, I play a few video games here and there, and I grow and plant waaaaay too many plants. 

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Video games, activism, and family are what bring me joy and give my life meaning. And when I say family I don't necessarily mean just those who share blood with me (hell, some who share blood with me I don't consider my family), anyone who I consider a friend or comrade; they are family.

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10 minutes ago, StormySky said:

Many western cultures (and some eastern ones too) are a little too obsessed with being "busy" that people forget to enjoy life.

I agree with you on this so much! I see many people who value 'busyness' just for the sake of it, while I think being busy is only good thing if we actually enjoy what we are trying to accomplish with it. And really enjoy it, not just pretend to enjoy it out of fear of being judged by society.

 

I'm curious about your creativity, @StormySky, because I kind of have problem with my own one. Whenever I want to try something new and creative, I have huge problem deciding what I should try to do with it. Probably because problem solving is more natural to me, and I feel lost if I don't have some well defined boundaries to the task at hand. How do creative people like you decide what do you want to create and how do you want to shape it? Hmm, might be better to talk about it in PMs if you don't mind, to not derail the thread.

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Animation (watching it), video games, YouTube, drinking fluids, 28mm miniatures, dog, drawing maps of my fake magic land for D&D and personal fulfillment, etc.

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Honestly, I've found that I'm a lot more happy when I'm being productive. Maybe this falls into the realm of valuing busyness too much, but crossing things off in my planner and checking off tasks on my to-do list always makes me feel better. It's not like I don't like having leisure time, but I dislike doing leisurely stuff when I still have tasks breathing down my neck - it just makes me feel stressed. After I have everything done, however, I'm more than happy to spend the remainder of my day watching funny videos, listening to music, or playing video games.

 

Besides that, there's a lot of stuff that others have mentioned that I enjoy as well - helping others, going outside (I actually try and park a little further away from my school so I get a couple nice 5-10 minute walks in every weekday - would highly recommend it), and spending time with family are all fun.

 

Also having a good, constant sleep schedule and not being afraid to nap when needed. If I'm having a bad day and working doesn't make me feel better, a nap is usually the solution.

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I'm still finding out what that is for me. I get really stressed out doing nearly anything and I've been dealing with a pretty significant period of depression.

 

What makes you happy?
I'm excited about my creative endeavors, especially those with which I can educate people.

I love a good meal.
I like learning about myself and finding labels and concepts to provide context for my past and current experiences.
Music is a big passion for me, especially singing, but the whole process of creating music is something I'm investing more time in.

 

How are you trying to bring joy into your own life?

I'm working on finding effective and constructive means of expressing myself.

I'm noticing my triggers and working to slowly remove them from my life.

I'm (starting again on) being mindful of what I eat and how it affects my body and how I feel.

I've been starting to meditate more.

I'm considering taking a break from how I've been going about living my life. Limited internet, less intake of information. More expression and output and more meditation.


I've made a lot of nebulous progress on things and in my life, and I've been pretty depressed, but having trust in the process and understanding that the path I'm on isn't for naught is keeping me more motivated than I would be otherwise. I can't say I'm VERY motivated, but I'm hopeful.

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2 hours ago, iam135 said:

Honestly, I've found that I'm a lot more happy when I'm being productive. Maybe this falls into the realm of valuing busyness too much, but crossing things off in my planner and checking off tasks on my to-do list always makes me feel better. It's not like I don't like having leisure time, but I dislike doing leisurely stuff when I still have tasks breathing down my neck - it just makes me feel stressed.

Me too, I also don't like having unresolved things. However, I'm also lazy, so I try to remove 'not fun' tasks from my life as much as possible, or just turn them into something fun. Doing grocery shopping is good example, this is now actually fun task, because not only I get to ride my bicycle along the harbour, I can also visit some nice places on my way there, like botanic gardens for example. Or even go to the waterfall from my avatar, this only takes 4 kilometers extra and short hike from the supermarket.

 

 

 

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Guest Deus Ex Infinity
6 hours ago, Marcin said:

For me, these are small things, like eating something good, walks around nature, enjoying decent view. I'm always trying to make things like that permanently present in my life. And also, positive interactions with people, like yesterday for example, helping a kid start their own video game project gave me plenty of joy 😸

 

I'm always looking to try more ways to enjoy life, so I'm curious, what are yours?

It's pretty much all the same with me but I also love making art (as main sourse of happiness) or spending time as a volunteer at my local animal shelter. I enjoy working as a pet sitter or to get lost in books & libraries, attenting conventions or staying occupied with buddhist studies, including retreats. 

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Siimo van der fietspad

- Bread making. This teaches some good life lessons about patience too (you have to accept that the process you've just initiated might take up to 24 hours, that you can't touch the thing now for four hours, that it still might not be perfect at the end) and is very satisfying when the end product comes out of the oven.

- 'Decorating' - and I don't really mean rolling a tin of magnolia on the stairs, although it does involve painting. I like to paint my own decorations and customise various things I own - eg my laptop cover and inside, making paintings for the walls, upcycling jackets and other items using paints or fabric markers. Often this can take a long time, several days to paint really complex designs, and sometimes I have to erase things and start again. I guess it's a form of putting ownership on mass-produced things and it's a very calming and creative activity too.

- Making music with friends. I go to a weekly jam session (including food) where we play celidah folk music and other styles. No gigging, no pressure to be perfect, just the enjoyment of the tunes.

- Running and cycling. If I have to explain, you'll never understand. The only thing that could make it better would be to find a companion for long-distance cycle tours.

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4 hours ago, Siimo said:

- Running and cycling. If I have to explain, you'll never understand. The only thing that could make it better would be to find a companion for long-distance cycle tours.

I'm no good at running, but cycling, heh, I go everywhere on that thing, I don't even have a car.
I actually just came back from a ride on a MTB track, it was so much fun (some potato phone photos if anyone is curious: photo1 photo2). Took a bit of an effort to ride up there since I'm definitely not fit, but so worth it!

 

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ôÿē èîęēú ïė ēôēįîûôø

I am made happy because of all the (non-financial) riches flowing into my life nowadays! I've been sharing wisdom on a Christian ace PM and am in personal contact with a union to whom I feel strongly connected! (Hi, @HayaH!)

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Siimo van der fietspad

Honestly I wish I was Dutch so I could trade in my car for a bakfiets and cycle literally everywhere (instead of just 80% of trips at the moment). No amount of aggressive drivers, headwinds, potholes and hills come close to the hell of sitting in traffic day after day.  And then some people don't 'get' why I try to ride as much as possible.

 

I actually ran a really slow Parkrun (compared to what I'm trying to achieve) this morning and wasn't bothered by it - partly due to a lot of runners turning up creating a slow start, a head cold and doing an hour run without stopping last night - and I'm pleased to say it didn't bother me, didn't get annoyed that I couldn't go faster. I was just happy to be out doing the run with hundreds of other people. I also like that every week I always meet somebody I know there, often someone I don't see so regularly.

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what makes  me happy is drawing art ,watercolor painting making emotional art, reading books ,comic books ,graphic novels,playing video games( about a hour or three per week)throwing my self out of the house to see something new on the weekends and watching TV with my adult kids.                                                                 Talk to people and try to pass on a positive outlook  to improve  my work day and there's hoping they carry it to some one else

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  • 4 weeks later...

I share a lot with what everyone already wrote.
The most joy I get out of creating acitivites, such as drawning and writing. I also love to read myself and to dream about fictional worlds always lightens my mood.
Music makes me happy. Almost all kind. I started to practice with my keyboard again and it's just fantastic. Through music (even only listening) I can express my feelings very well and feel like I have full access to them.
I like to surround myself with animals. I can't really feel sad (anymore) whenever I see a cat or a dog (or just any animal, really). Unfortunately, I can't afford to have my own pets at the moment. Hence why I sometimes go to my local animal shelter to play with the cats or pet them and take a dog for a walk. It gives me so much peace.

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Guest Jetsun Milarepa
9 minutes ago, IceKing said:

I like to surround myself with animals. I can't really feel sad (anymore) whenever I see a cat or a dog (or just any animal, really). Unfortunately, I can't afford to have my own pets at the moment. Hence why I sometimes go to my local animal shelter to play with the cats or pet them and take a dog for a walk. It gives me so much peace.

Right with you there! I don't have my own pet at the moment but charitable fundraising for animal charities (and now Degu-sitting my daughter's 4 pets ) gives a purpose. Some things (the planet, it's other non-human inhabitants) are bigger than just us.

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  • 2 weeks later...
Guest DesertWells

This is tricky! A lot of the things I enjoy, don’t actually make me happy, does that make sense? I enjoy gaming, watching tv, movies, but it doesn’t make me happy. I guess I associate happiness with fulfilment, rather than satisfaction.

 

Writing makes me happy though. Being vulnerable and honest with someone makes me happy, sharing life experiences, support, advice.

 

I try to find happiness in the small things, in a rainbow or a sunset, in the smile of someone I love. There’s magic in mystery, that’s my favourite place to find happiness, you know, water tastes better when you’ve worked for it.

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Silver Dreamcatcher

Painting flowers or nature in oils makes me happy also working in my garden, listening to music or audible books on my Kindle Fire.

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For me what makes me happy are good books, movies, traveling, and my friends.  I also love longboarding/landpaddling, scootering and I am in the process of fixing up my vintage Cannondale bike and getting back into distance cycling as working out/exercise is one of my big joys too.

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AVEN meets, and finding new beers, new places to explore. Social clubs and pub games 

Golf (unless I drive into a bunker or three putt😋 😋) a good book, kitties 

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Running is definitely a big one for me, its something that challenges me and I love setting new goals for myself and beating them, and it makes me feel strong.

 

Creating, as many have said. I love to draw and paint, currently in a bit of a dry spell, but usually i love it.

 

I try to see my friends at least once a month, and keeping up my relationships with them brings me great joy.

 

I enjoy taking care of people in small ways. Cooking for my boyfriend or giving my sister advice.

 

Besides that...just the little things really. I love gaming, reading blogs, going to the gym, taking long walks. I love fashion and makeup so planning a new creative outfit makes me happy. Going out to breakfast with someone I love. That's the good stuff :)

 

 

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1. Completing my transition and fixing my health will make me happy, so I focus on getting this done.

2. Gaining complete independence from destructive people in my life, so I can restrict our interrelation to my terms

3. Reading and learning

4. Smashbooking / visual arts / photography

5. Being outdoors

6. Watching nature documentaries on DVD

7. Particular meditation practices

8. Vegan cooking, especially Asian food

9. Getting involved with projects that are important to me philosophically

10. Environmentalism / minimalism / zero-waste / sustainability

11. The apex of all these however is my spiritual life. "Religious" may be a dirty word, but this is the thing that brings me the most fulfillment, meaning, happiness and joy in life. Helping my people however I can, helping my own teachers to teach others, volunteering, interacting and just being around them and our space as much as possible.

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  • 2 months later...

I think being happy is overrated. Being Schizoaffective I tend to swing between being depressed and just moodless. It's the meds that make me emotionless. 

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Guest Jetsun Milarepa

I like to shake things up a bit from time to time, and I like moving on (Wand'rin' Star should be my theme tune!)

Right now I'm shortly going to be doing a new job, so I'm happy as I was in a boring rut. Every day was like Groundhog Day!

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  • 4 weeks later...

I go to school for fun. I'm that weirdo I guess. But I also do art on the side.helping in the community also. I gardened with a volunteer garden for a food pantry last year. May do it again this year! Love gardening also...I dont know why but everything I plant just goes nuts! 

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Small things make me happy too, like when the sun comes out after a few days or when someone is randomly nice to me. Other things that make me happy are my hobbies, especially writing and video games. I love reading a good book or watching the story of a game unfold too, and depending on how the story goes it can make me happy. Being around good people/friends too also makes me happy. I love the comfort of myself and sometimes like being alone > other people, but nothing beats quality time with a good friend. Also... cute doggos make me happy! 😄

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