“The disturbers of happiness are our desires, our griefs, and our fears.” -Samuel Johnson
Last week I shared my most recent, surprising, and disruptive experiences with Brandon. Despite this adversity, I was able to forge ahead and have a very productive, fulfilling week. While I suffered for Brandon and his situation, I was also quite focused that the life I was living and the activities I was engaging is was the path I needed to remain on despite the chaos around me.
As I read this quote shared by Gretchen Rubin and her Happiness Project, I immediately reflected back to a paragraph from last week’s thoughts:
Life interrupts our momentum with the biggest of hurts, distractions and challenges. No one enjoys them, looks forward to them, or even asks for them. They come anyway. What you do, where you go, and how you live in the face of these adversities is measured by how effectively you stay on your path as you go through it. Adversities can slow you and distract you — but, they also define you. When the storm hits — be strong, stay focused, and keep moving. Trust your path and you will get through it. And, remind yourself to trust that others are on their very unique path, as well — their journey is not yours to define or manage.
Whether your happiness is being interrupted by external forces or that incessant, internal chatter in your head, the key to remaining focused and on your path is trust. Once you have defined your vision for your life and begin to travel the path toward that vision, the key to staying on course is trust. There will be course corrections, their will be detours and, at times, progress will be slow. This does not mean your vision or your path are flawed or failed. It means you need to trust your choices and your decisions. It means you need to find happiness and peace through the journey — even the confusing, challenging, and difficult parts. And, it means that you need to interrupt those forces — internal or external — that are attempting to derail you along the way by reminding yourself why you defined this path and what you are driving towards.
When you interrupt the interrupters with a focused, committed confidence, you experience peace, joy and happiness in maintaining your effort.
