This could be looked at as a dreary day.  I see the grey skies, but I choose to focus on the beauty of the clouds.  The roads and trails are hard, icy and slippery, but they are also beautiful, covered by a light dusting of snow.  The air is cold to breathe and it does hurt my face a little, but it is also invigorating and makes me feel awake and alive.  I would like blue skies, warm air and green grass, but I can’t have that right now.  I can’t control the weather, but I can choose to accept what the day gives me, make the most of it, and be thankful for it.

It takes effort to be happy.  We can’t choose what happens to us, but we can choose how we react to what happens and how we feel about it.  I’d have liked a brighter, warmer, sunnier day when I went out today, but I found the beauty in the day I had.  To better cope with life’s difficulties and be happier we need to accept the negative and look for the silver lining.  While I didn’t get a sunny day yesterday, I did find beauty and novelty that I would have missed if I’d just stayed home where it was warm.

We all must be able to feel our feelings, including the negative ones, and to “vent” and share them sometimes.  But when we stay stuck focusing on what we are unhappy with it is often because we are trying to fight against it.  When we accept things as they are we can give up fighting reality and accept where we are, to move forward.  It also helps to realize the balance of good and bad that is inherent in most everything.  At the least, things can very nearly always be worse.  The snow could be rain, the rain could be freezing, you could be homeless from a hurricane. Nearly all days we can find some positive things in the day itself and bad days are nearly always followed by better days.  Research shows that a daily practice of identifying things that we are thankful for makes us happier and has positive effects on depression.

Every day, life gives us challenges, responsibilities and distractions, and often things that we are not happy about.  We can focus on how much we aren’t happy about them, feeling frustrated, angry, like it’s all unfair.  Or we can make the effort to accept these things and look for the positive.  There is almost always a silver lining if you try hard enough to find one.  I started this blog in my head while out for a run this morning.  I was hesitant to get out the door because it was cold, kind of dreary, and later in the day than I would like.  As I came to focus on my surroundings I began to appreciate being out and moving and enjoying my surroundings.  I became inspired to stop home for my phone to take some pictures and write about how I found happiness today.