“Happiness is pretty simple: someone to love, something to do, something to look forward to.” — Rita Mae Brown
I once had a boss who encouraged everyone to schedule vacations. “Everyone needs something to look forward to,” he’d say as he talked about his next upcoming adventure. He was right. Having something to look forward to gives us a reason to get up in the morning, put on our work clothes, and head off to sometimes less-than-desirable jobs with the knowledge that in the not too distant future there will, indeed, be a reward for our efforts. And while my husband and I usually have two or three planned trips to look forward to in our future, I feel extremely fortunate that I have something to look forward to every single day: doing handstands.
When I say I love doing handstands, I’m not lying. I look forward to getting up early (5:00 am) every day so I have plenty of time to do handstands before I go to work. Every time I can kick up and get at least a few seconds of hold time, I am extremely happy. Tremendously happy. Blissfully happy. It’s a happiness that I literally carry around with me all day, and is there for me to think about from time to time when the workday occasionally makes my mind weary. Sounds like a bunch of malarky, but I am stating real facts.
Recently, I missed two days of handstanding due to illness. (Just assume that if I feel too bad to handstand, I’m really sick.) When I felt confident that I had made sufficient recovery for handstanding, I set my alarm — even though the next day was a Sunday — with excited anticipation that I would be waking up to handstand again. Because I love handstanding. (Did I say that already?)
I can’t remember what I looked forward to daily before I started handstanding. Perhaps it was an upcoming trip or planned adventure that kept me excited throughout the day. And while some may say looking ahead keeps you from enjoying the present, I would argue that sometimes looking ahead is the only thing that makes the present moment bearable. Like looking forward to the end of the work day and the plans you’ve made with your spouse or friends. Just looking forward to what’s ahead and thinking about what’s happening in the future can make you feel happy in that present moment, and may even elicit a little shiver of excitement for what lies ahead.
Plan your next trip. Schedule something fun in the very near future. Set your alarm and make time for walking or meditating or handstanding in the mornings. Think of something today that will make you feel good tomorrow. And then do it. And experience the happiness of looking forward to it.
Thank you for reading this post. Please share with others if you like what I wrote.
