Sadness and Joy

This is the time of year when I find that I, and many others, are affected by the lack of sunshine, cold, being housebound, etc. which can lead to a sense of sadness and depression.  If you happen to be prone to such feelings as these anyway, then this time of year tends to bring out and heighten these emotions.  So if life has already given you reasons to be sad and you haven't done your work to heal these feelings, then this time of year will be the most difficult.

I remember a time in my  life when I was overwhelmed by many life circumstances that had left my body, mind and emotions drained and became exhausted, sad and depressed.  When you are at the bottom of such an emotional pit it feels very overwhelming and you feel helpless to make change.  The condition of depression itself causes you to feel deadened and unable to move forward effectively.  For me this lasted for the better part of five years.  The turning point came when I was introduced to positive mental attitude books and tapes.  I read and listened and over time the floor of the pit I was in started to rise and the pit didn't seem to be so deep any more.  I was able to start to release the sadness, regain my strength and optimism and move forward once again.

I tell you this personal story to highlight the truth that we are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think.  When we can only see and think from a perspective of dark, negative, tired thoughts then we become sad and depressed.  However, when the mind becomes lighter and filled with positive thoughts then we become happy and joyful.  It sounds simple, but clearly it takes time and dedicated refocusing to turn the sadness into joy.  It is a process of taking responsibility for our thoughts and refusing to allow only negativity to be in our mind.  We are what we think.....and energy follow thoughts.  So the responsibility for the state of our being falls squarely on ourselves.

Sadness and depression form in our energy and emotions when the ego mind tells us a continually sad story.  This story may be rooted in situational facts, but won't have the complete truth.  The truth is that we are each souls of peace, love, light and joy and that no matter what has happened in our lives this truth never changes.  The process of regaining balance from sadness to joy is one where we stop the negative chatter and open to this deep, profound truth and awareness of our greater selves and potential.  The voice of our higher self is a positive, supportive one and once we regain our connection to it, the joy that springs from our inner source is untouched by circumstance or situation.  In other words, difficult things may happen, but it does not pull us into a state of depression any longer.  This is the primary goal of healing to re-establish our connection to our core being and then live from this place.

Joy springs from within; no one makes you joyous; you choose joyfulness.  Joy is a sustained sense of well being and internal peace - a connection to what really matters.  Joy is not in things - it is in each of us......and it is certainly okay to feel more joy than others around you.  It is one of the greatest gifts we can give.  The world needs our joy, not our sadness.  The true measure of our success and healing is the amount of joy we feel and have to give to others.  Joy is a quality of the soul and is realized in the mind when personality and soul are in alignment.  The closer you come to being an expression of your core beingness, the greater will be your joy.

In peace............Margie