“I believe that the very purpose of life is to be happy. From the very core of our being, we desire contentment. In my own limited experience I have found that the more we care for the happiness of others, the greater is our own sense of wellbeing. Cultivating a close, warmhearted feeling for others automatically puts the mind at ease. It helps remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have and gives us the strength to cope with any obstacles we encounter. It is the principal source of success in life. Since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness on external development alone. The key is to develop inner peace.” -Dalai Lama

The day was marked by ease and grace. I am in travel mode, on the road to a medical convention to share the wonders of Good Clean Love. These travel days can be stressful with so many details and unknowns mingling together; I have had many days, when what should have been easy was incredibly challenging, and other days like today, when things are so easy, that it seems just my presence is enough to make things click. 

Moments of ease and grace are more common than we think, but today it was my 12 year old daughter Emma who reminded me in the elevator on the way up to our room, what a perfect day it was. Her older sister asked her why? And she said, “Well nothing went wrong.” And in fact, just her mentioning it gave us pause to consider all that went right.

We were able to set up the booth despite missing the hall closing time, we found a great little Mexican place for dinner, and we got free parking at the hotel because they didn’t have my suite available. It just kept being easy.

If happiness is indeed the purpose of life then realizing that it is in our midst is the key. Taking the time to notice when it is working in our life and relationships is all that it takes to re-focus our mind and feel grateful for what is working. What we focus on multiplies, so learning to recognize and acknowledge the small victories, the way things just happen exactly as they needed to, even before we are aware of it, is a focus that creates contentment.