"Joy for human beings lies in proper human work. And proper human work consists in: acts of kindness to other human beings, disdain for the stirrings of the senses, identifying trustworthy impressions, and contemplating the natural order and all that happens in keeping with it." —MARCUS AURELIUS, MEDITATIONS, 8.26
I was recently reading that the Amish community in America, according to the statistics, are among the healthiest group of people in the world. They don’t follow any extreme or expensive fad diets; they eat fresh, minimally processed foods. The Amish also move a lot, I've read the average Amish male gets 18,000 steps per day. They work very hard as well and believe in community and a higher-power greater than themselves.
Even though all of us aren’t built to live a 17th century lifestyle, one thing is for sure, each of us should make it our mission to discover our purpose—the things in life that really ignite our souls.
How long has it been since you’ve been truly excited to get out of bed and start your day?
Although it’s unrealistic to expect to feel this level of excitement every day, if you’re truly evolving and living you should feel some level of enthusiasm on a somewhat regular basis. I believe a lot of our feelings of depression, lethargy, and general boredom stem from the fact that we simply aren’t pushing ourselves out of our comfort zones enough. We've stopped truly living in the moment.
Try something new! Don’t allow yourself to settle so much into the routines of life that you lose yourself and your purpose in the process. Life is deceptively short, make your happiness a top priority. Be introspective. The first step in finding happiness is to determine what brings you joy. These sources of joy are a bit like a fingerprint, they’re different for everyone, so no one can really discover them for you. This takes work and most people just aren’t interested in doing it.
There's no mistaking someone whose truly found their purpose because they seem to glow from the inside out and become almost magnetic to those around them.
What’s the best way to find your own unique source(s) of joy you ask?
The best way I've found is to follow the many signposts of your interests and curiosities. This is typically the universe’s way of pointing you towards a brand new life—a life of fulfillment, improved health, and an indescribable feeling of purpose. Your life will feel complete and you’ll cease to simply exist, you’ll be living your best life. You're the only one who can truly ignite your soul—you deserve to feel that immense level of joy and fulfillment.
You deserve to shine.
For the coming week, set a notification on your mobile device for once during the morning and once in the afternoon (or write it on a Post-It Note and put it on your mirror), ask yourself…
Where are my interests and curiosities leading me today?
This week, I leave you with a poem:
reside in each
of our moments,
derivative of all those
who came before us,
each smile
they ever smiled,
each mile
they ever traveled,
each idea
they ever thought,
each tear
they ever cried,
every struggle
they ever fought,
in this kinetic chain
that builds upon
the story of humanity,
one experience at a time,
live your dreams
fulfill every curiosity,
listen to your heart,
be your best self,
into the narrative of
the Universe,
this might be
the best way,
the only way
to give a proper
thank you to
the many who lived
and died for
you to enjoy
this very breath.
Be well, make the most of this day. Thank you for reading!
If you're interested in learning to meditate, please take a look at my book, The Perfect Pause.