What is happiness?

HAPPINESS IS….

*The sound of the ocean, with your feet in the sand
*Smiles from strangers in passing; the acknowledgment of your existence
*That moment in your run where you feel like you are on top of the world… like you could keep running forever, even though your legs are numb and the heat is overpowering… and you keep going
*Watching a movie and having Jess look over at me with a look of awe on her face saying, “Do you realize you are shaking your whole entire leg right now? And the whole couch?”
*Waking up to the sound of rain outside your window and letting it sing you back to sleep
*Grams & Grampsicle’s house jam-packed with the cackling hens & co.
*Getting letters from the people you love, and knowing distance never changes anything
*Cheerios and bananas for breakfast
*Watching your amazing little brothers transform and grow into beautiful people
*Shawnee…. after he’s had his first pot of coffee
*The sound of my mother’s laughter and the warmth of her embrace
*White Christmas’s with the family, temporarily putting our lives on hold and just being together and letting that be enough
*Loving and feeling loved in return
*Airports and big suitcases and the uncertainty of what will happen next
*Getting completely and utterly lost inside of a book and not wanting it to end
*Knowing that someone sees all of your ugliness but somehow still thinks you are beautiful
*When my Dad says “Hey sweets” or calls me “R,” making me know I will be his little girl forever
*Falling asleep to “My Hiding Place”
*Air hugs and kisses from Matt & Aaron on skype
*Rosie Thomas and coffee…. with coffeemate
*When someone you meet just briefly recognizes you three weeks later and remembers your name
*Linda’s homecookin’ and the way she always hugs me when she sees me
*Knowing that the future is limitless and that it is okay to be afraid, but having faith that everything will end up right as it belongs

I have only been here for a little over two months and if I have learned one thing so far, it is has been the affirmation that I am completely and utterly blessed with all of the people I have in my life. And that my life is not determined by others, but rather it is my canvas to paint whatever the hell I want. And that time, like distance, may heal the wounds, but it never takes away love or the people that matter most. And that life can be good… very good. You just have to let yourself feel it.

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