Sunday, May 23, 2010

Happily Ever After

A good friend asked me a couple of days ago if I am happier now that I have lost the weight. My answer was immediate.

No.

I explained that I never let my size determine my level of happiness. I have always generally been a positive person and, whether I see 266 or 142 on the scale, I won’t ever let a number define my outlook on life.

That being said, I went on to share that what is different is that I have less to worry about now. I don’t stress out when I have to look for clothes. I no longer fear not being able to keep up with others. I am not scared that I will drop dead of a heart attack.

There is a lot that has been relieved from my shoulders as the weight has come off. I no longer feel weighed down in either a physical or a mental sense. And, of course, the emotions that have been able to show more clearly with such burdens removed are bound to be noticeable.

My friend summed up my feelings on this nicely. He said that dropping the weight has allowed my happiness to shine through more. I think that is quite apt.

Personally, I have always believed that we are the creators of our own level of peace and contentment. Life can get in the way and there are many trials to face as we move from one moment to the next, but ultimately we are in control of how we respond. We are the architects of our own happiness. Whether we build up great monuments to the cause or choose to tend only to tiny shacks we shouldn’t let something like our weight determine how much light we let into the place we dwell.

FOOD & BEVERAGES:
- 8 glasses of water
- 1 pan-fried banana and light peanut butter wrap on a soft tortilla shell
- 1 mug butterscotch steamed skim milk
- 4 cups salad with deli ham, grated cheese, lettuce, tomato, green pepper, onion, black olives, and honey mustard dressing
- 3/4 cup fat free strawberry yogurt with 3/4 cup Multigrains cereal
- 1 1/2 cups heated tuna salad with grated cheese, grated zucchini, onion, mushrooms, fat free Miracle Whip, mustard, and pepper
- 1 cranberry almond multi-grain bar
- 1 3/4 cups strawberries

EXERCISE:
- 55 minutes of rowing a dragon boat

12 comments:

  1. What a great post, and one I really needed to read tonight. You're such an inspiration to me. Thank you! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. great post. I am glad you had the wherewithall to be happy irregardless of the circumstances.
    Very cool.

    ReplyDelete
  3. weight. where we live. its all the same in a way.

    theres a small chance I might move and my friends are shocked Im not freaking out.
    I said to them kindasorta what you said above:

    IM HAPPY or UN depending on whats inside me.
    moving changes that not at all.

    xo xo

    ReplyDelete
  4. I learned a long time ago that losing weight does not bring inner happiness for long. Life happens big or small. It's how we deal with life, shaping who we are as people.

    Great post 266!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi, Thanks for the award! Its my first! And sorry for accepting it a little late, I was on a short break. Thanks for it all the same. I'll do a post on it soon.

    And your post today was absolutely great. Happiness is in accepting yourself the way you are yet trying to be a better person. Conflicting but true!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Beautiful beautiful words you've shared today. I share your sentiment on this and always have. I loved when you talked about whether or not to re-do your wedding photos and I am SO GLAD that you chose not to. I would never redo mine. That day was a beautiful day...regardless of my weight. :) You inspire me daily!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great post! I'm with you on having never let my weight stop me from being happy. Loved how it just "shines through" more now concept.

    Choosing to be happy is a great ability and one I'm learning more and more daily.

    ReplyDelete
  8. LOVE IT- Great post!! It kind of sums up some of my thougths I've had after losing 100 pounds. It's not like losing the weight magically makes everything fit together and work perfectly. It doesn't make life happier all of the sudden. It's just hard to pinpoint what is exactly missing out now. I always blamed everything on my weight! Now I just need to dig deeper and find the true feelings!

    ReplyDelete
  9. So true. Happiness doesn't have that much to do with weight-- or it doesn't have to, let's put it that way.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Left you an award on my blog :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Seriously, you are a wise bunch! I love the remarks that you leave on here... it always gives me so much more to think about and a chance to explore facets of my own thoughts which I otherwise would never have considered.

    ReplyDelete

Tracker