Let's be happy as we move ahead

I've reread some of my recent posts and realized that a few of them are, quite honestly, downers. Yes, I have some things going on in life that I wish would go away forever, but writing about those things and whining about how bad I feel, how I'm suffering [stands up and strikes dramatic pose], and other such things is not helping me to get over those obstacles. In the face of life's difficulties, I've always been able to see at least a quarter of a ray of sunshine fighting to come through. And I'm going to share a little of that with you today. With a little luck, you'll reach the end of this post with a smile on your face.

We're in a new year, a new decade (in my opinion; some think that the new decade begins next year), and it's time to look forward and move in that direction. For me, the 2010s were the biggest suckfest of my life. I spent most of that decade out of work, I hardly went anywhere—no flights, no train trips, didn't even leave the state (though I did take my first two trips to Yosemite), my health went from reasonable to going to pot, and financial woes a-plenty. No good! Time for a change.

Everyone has their own way of bringing happiness into their life. Some people meditate. Some take up a hobby. Some bake cookies and some pick their nose. As everyone knows, I'm a bit...different. Here at the ripe old age of 60, I still ride roller coasters and LOVE it! Believe it or not, a few people have given me some grief about that. I don't understand. If something makes you happy, why not enjoy it as much as you can as long as you're not hurting anyone in the process? I think people who like to rain on someone else's parade are deep down, unhappy, miserable people who don't know what they want in life. Or they don't like that others freely do whatever they want without any direction from someone, so these dismal folks attempt to jump in and take over. Pfft. Control freaks. I know about this firsthand, but won't go there now because it isn't happy and I don't want to name names. But it may be a good topic for a future post.

My health issues are not going to improve overall, contrary to what a few people in my life seem to think. I respect their opinions because I know they want what's best for me, but since I have to live with this body for the rest of its existence, I know a bit more about it than they do. There will be upturns in my condition, but upturns aren't always forever. One of my favorite sayings says it all: "All I can do is the best I can do."

A new year, a new decade. I can set some goals. I can pray for improvements in all aspects of my health—employment, financial, mental and physical. Lord willing, everything will come together before too long. And that would make me happy.