On Contentment

Contentment, which I believe is the most true form of happiness, can only be found from within. It is a foundation of contentment that allows us to experience the almost external or more euphoric versions of happiness. On the outside is this happiness that is common, and is what people talk about, and which is often faked. You can usually see this happiness on others. I say on, not in because I believe that it is the last layer or the whole package of happiness, the frosting if you will, and like frosting it is wonderfully sweet and it is so tempting to lick it all off and be on your cupcakey way. Well at least it is if you are me, because I have kind of a thing for frosting. Anyhow, if that's the outside happiness, what is the inside, the core. I think it's contentment, and like so may things in life, it's the foundation that is the hardest to get right, the easiest to ignore in favor of the flashy frosting layer.

Lately, I've been running again. Well, running may be a string word, more like shuffling and gasping interspersed with walking. I've been down this path before, usually I get myself to the point where I can actually run a mile before injury takes over or my will power runs out. This time though, I'm doing it differently, this time I'm working on the core of running, I'm drilling he skills of proper foot fall, learning good cadence and building a solid foundation to run from. And you know, this time feels very differ, it feels like I am takin running into myself in a way I never have before. It's like taking the time to retrain my brain and body has also opened up a different part of my spirit to the running. Like the core of me is beginning. To understand that this is valuable to me and that I can do it with this foundation.

So if the foundation of something as seemingly simple as running is complex and need thought and training, how much more so must happiness need it? So how do you build contentment. I think it may be different for everyone, but let me suggest this, I think you build contentment by choosing actions in your life that most closely align with your values and ideals. And I don't mean your external ideas like six pack abs or a 110k retirement account by 30, I mean the ideals that make you tear up inside, like making beautiful things or serving others or honoring the natural world. The values make the core of us and I think that stepping in line with them builds the most lasting contentment to the point where even this inner foundation of happiness begins to shine through to the outside and you wear the glow of the truly happy, the content.