I Am Happiest When [No.27]

Posted by Jill Chivers in Happy

Being comfortable with who you are

I’ve been reading a lot about women who are comfortable in their skin. And how attractive that makes her, no matter how smooth her skin is, how glossy her hair is, or how close to her measurements when she was 21 her body now is.

This has become an extremely relevant topic for me to muse on throughout this year-long experiment of choosing happy. As I get older, and I start to look older, issues of attractiveness, and their cousins of vanity and ego, come up.

Instead of being angsty about how my face and body are changing (especially my face), perhaps there’s another way I could look at this. One that focused more on the inner than the outer.

What if getting older meant getting better?

What if getting older meant the opportunity to be happier, on my own terms?

What if getting older means I was more and more comfortable in my skin?

“The moment will arrive when you are comfortable with who you are, and what you are — bald or old or fat or poor, successful or struggling — when you don’t feel the need to apologize for anything or to deny anything.

To be comfortable in your own skin is the beginning of strength.”
― Charles B. Handy

What if getting older was the beginning of a new kind of strength?

I am happiest when (#27)

I am out and about. I work from home and days can go by without me leaving the house to visit more than the grocery store. I try not to do that too often, as it leaves me feeling isolated and unstimulated. And that’s not good for me. I love to be out in the midst of it, seeing things, watching people, enjoying the hustle and bustle (if that’s what’s around me), taking it all in and being part of it. Even a short trip to the grocery store with a stop off for a pot of tea can give my day a little lift. And sometimes that’s all I need – a simple and inexpensive outing – to give me a little taste of happiness.