If you’ve been on Facebook, watched the Academy Awards or listened to the radio lately, you surely have heard the “Happy” song by Pharrell Williams. Here’s the Youtube link in the event you haven’t http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y6Sxv-sUYtM (It’s my new theme song)
It is an amazingly catchy tune that you can’t help but move to. On my morning walk, I switched from a depressing news item on the station I was listening to, to this song. My gait dramatically changed and if anyone was watching, they surely would have wondered what the heck I was doing, dancing along the road. (I know the dog probably thought that) As I turned the corner, I was presented with the amazing scene in the picture above. The brilliant red sun rising caused me to not only stop and take a picture, but to marvel at the sheer beauty of it all.
Now, I could have focused my attention on some other things. The several feet of snow piled up on the sides of the road. The fact that even though it is March, I was still bundled in many layers of winter clothing. Or, that depressing news segment on the radio. But I didn’t, and I think my new favorite song set my mood in such a way that I was open to the positive instead of the negative.
We often forget that we get to choose how we orient ourselves to the world. We decide how we will interpret what we encounter. And the possibilities that we see are framed by the lens we are looking through. We also get to invite people and experiences into our lives that create a mood that supports us in our efforts to see the good.
Our own happiness, and ability to positively impact the world in which we live depends on what we pay attention to. Isn’t that great news!
PS: Seriously, click on that Youtube video right now. You can’t help but dance!
