Burn Brighter

Here's an experiment I highly recommend trying:

Every one of us knows, somewhere deep down, what it's like to be truly happy, if only for brief moments.

For me, raucous laughter comes to mind. When a friend (or my hilarious daughter Daphne) tells me something very funny, for at least a few seconds I am truly free from self concern. There's no sense of any of my usual problems, it's just the physical act of cracking up at a genuinely funny story. It can last a while, sometimes up to a whole minute.

That sets a certain mood, doesn't it? The laughter often morphs into social interactions with other people afterward. You're still smiling as you interact with your partner, child, other friend, or even a stranger -- if you're at work, or in a store or restaurant (and yes we WILL be returning to work and restaurants at some point sooner than later), maybe that good mood gets shown to the waiter or cashier or coworker or mailman or whoever, and you wind up being extra pleasant to them. An otherwise ordinary encounter turns into something better, all because you're burning slightly brighter because of that funny interaction with your friend.

Can we just invoke this feeling at will? I think we can.

At various moments throughout the day -- maybe you could try this today -- just invoke/declare this positive, carefree attitude as you interact with other people. They can be family, friends, colleagues, or strangers. Just allow yourself to light up brighter in those exchanges. Be more interested, more compassionate, less judgmental.

Are you up for trying it? It's easier when spurred by a funny moment, but you can simply skip that step, and declare yourself to be burning just a little bit brighter at any moment. I'm betting everyone around you will notice, and, for a brief moment, the world will be a better place.