I saw this on a friend’s blog and really liked it. I know that a lot of times in life we play the “When Then” game. We get caught in “when I have (you fill in the blank…a new car, no mortgage payment, the perfect haircut, etc) I will be happy.” In actuality, we can find happiness all around us!

Make up your mind to be happy-even when you don’t have money, even when you don’t have a clear complexion, even when you don’t have the Nobel Prize. Some of the happiest people I know have none of these things the world insists are necessary for satisfaction and joy. Why are they happy? I suppose it is because they don’t listen very well. Or they listen too well-to the things their hearts tell them. They glory in the beauty of the earth. They glory in the rivers and the canyons and the call of the meadowlark. They glory in the love of their families, the stumbling steps of a toddler, the wise and tender smile of the elderly. They glory in honest labor. They glory in the scriptures. They glory in the presence of the Holy Ghost. One thing I know for certain: the time we have here goes by far too quickly. Don’t waste any more time sitting on the bench watching life pass you by.

Joseph B. Wirthlin, “Lessons Learned in the Journey of Life.” Ensign, May 2001, 35.