So, I hear people telling me all the time that I should smile more, and was told the other day that I sound angry in my writings. The kind lady who told me that also told me to not lose my edge. I am not always a smiley person, and when I do smile it is often kind of hid by my mustache. I am direct and to the point when communicating with others which comes across as angry I guess if you are a snowflake, but this is largely due to my military career where you do not have the time to use 500 words to say what really only takes about 50 to communicate.I am one of the most truly happy people I know. Learning to be happy in life goes a long way towards a lifestyle of health and wellness. Happy people enjoy life and will usually bounce back from ailments and injuries quicker than grumpy folks who would rather lie around while bitching and complaining rather than getting their ass up and doing something to improve their lot in life.

From Harvard Health; Positive emotions have been linked with better health, longer life, and greater well-being in numerous scientific studies. On the other hand, chronic anger, worry, and hostility increase the risk of developing heart disease, as people react to these feelings with raised blood pressure and stiffening of blood vessels. But it isn’t easy to maintain a healthy, positive emotional state. Positive Psychology: Harnessing the power of happiness, mindfulness, and inner strength is a guide to the concepts that can help you find well-being and happiness, based on the latest research.

I am a happy person, and I find happiness in serving greater interests than self. As with this blog, I hope that my writings will inspire and help others to a life of health and wellness, along with contentment. I dedicate time each week, if not daily in my writing as it makes me feel better to use what I know from personal experience and through diligent research and study to try and enrich the lives of others.

I have a different world view than a lot of folks. I am a retired military veteran who has traveled the world quite extensively and wake up every day happy with the life I live, in the country I live in. Talking with folks daily whether online or in person reminds me of how narrow a world view so many have. Not to say I think there is something wrong with these folks, but if you have not truly traveled and seen true poverty, you have no clue how good you have life. Our nations poor in the USA actually live what is a middle class life style in many countries around the world. Let that soak for a minute. Our poor in government housing have air conditioning in the summer and heat in the winter. There is usually a television and gaming system, cell phones and other electronic goods. When you see hungry children it is a majority of the time because of a lack of priority by the parents over a lack of food for nourishment. Before anyone gets their panties in a bunch, know that I grew up in a poor community where I have seen this first hand.

I love life and all of the opportunities afforded in our society. There is an abundance of opportunity for anyone willing to open their eyes and seek it out. All you have to do is step  up and take charge of your own life, develop a plan and then execute it. If you get knocked down, you can always get your ass back up and persevere if you are willing to do so. The alternative is to lay back and lick your nuts while feeling sorry for yourself. This is the difference between being broke and being poor. A broke person is going to work hard to get their financial life back in order while a poor person has a state of mind that life is unfair to them and they are victims of circumstance. I have been broke more than once in my life, but have never been poor. Poor is a state of mind.

There is great joy in helping others who are in need of a hand up. In my world wide travels, I have seen true poverty in Africa, the Philippines,  Mexico and a few other places. I have been involved in charitable work rebuilding and or repairing schools and homes in impoverished nations. Taking a portion of my Liberty time while in port to assist others. When you are helping others and see the joy it brings them, it brings inner peace to yourself. I have made friends while working these projects in the Philippines who invited me into their homes for dinner. It is a truly humbling experience when someone who lives in a thatch hut with a dirt floor shares a meal with you. This is one of those times where no matter what is served, your ass had damn well better enjoy it and make the hostess feel wonderful for providing you such a delicious meal.

Here at home, I have volunteered countless hours to Habit For Humanity in providing labor and my painting skills to folks who are building their own homes. Their first time at home ownership where they have direct sweat equity in the home. I have helped people of all races exclusively in the inner cities. You see the joy in their hearts as their dream home nears completion, and ecstasy once it is complete and they move in. I have been involved in Habitat on the east coast, in Texas and in the Kansas City metro area. I have never asked for a penny for my time helping others, as there is no amount of money that can bring me happiness and inner peace which comes from helping others. I love my life and have always used my hard times as teachable or learning moments. Even my spinal injury which bankrupted me financially and about crippled my ass. That injury and recovery taught me that it all can be taken away in the blink of an eye, but through hard work and perseverance, peace and contentment can all be brought back even stronger than before.

For a little more perspective of how and why I enjoy my life besides having traveled the world and helping others to a better life, my paternal grand parents were farmers in north central Missouri. By today’s standards, they would be considered to have been living in poverty. They did not have electricity until the mid fifties, and my grand father farmed a little under 200 acres with a walk behind single blade plow pulled by a team of mules. My grand mother did not have indoor plumbing until she left her farm in about 1978 to live in the city. For water, there was a well outside the kitchen door. For baths, there was a galvanized wash tub which you filled with pots of water you heated on the stove. The bathroom? Try running outside to an outhouse about 25 years north of the house with a foot of snow on the ground.

Face it, in 2018 we live lives full of abundance yet so many people can not find happiness which has a direct affect on their health and wellness. We live in a nation where our largest medical issues stem from obesity and the Standard American Diet which is largely shit food from fast food restaurants, sugary and processed foods. When you have seen true poverty, it is almost laughable when you see poor people who are obese. No, it is certainly not funny, just ironic that we have food choices where no one has to be obese. Through my writings in the past I have shown that you can eat healthy and on a low budget. I will continue to share low budget healthy ideas going forward.

I firmly believe in the connection between happiness, inner peace and contentment with good health and wellness. Despite not being a smiley person all of the time, I truly enjoy life and interacting with others. I honestly enjoy helping others to better themselves. When you place serving the greater good of others over self, you will find peace which will lower your stress. Stress kills as much as a shitty diet.

Live, love and learn to enjoy life. Appreciate what you have and quit dwelling on what you do not have.  Make a plan to achieve your life goals and then execute it. have a Plan B and a Plan C as Plan A will almost always have to be revised. But, never quit moving forward. Expand yourself by pushing the envelope. You never know how far your boundaries may be until you have pushed up against them.