10 things that make me happy...continued

6. Love- I love LOVE. Don't we all though? I love loving. I love being loved. Love makes me happy. Love gives me purpose and fuels me when my happiness-o-meter is low. Friendship love, family love and husband love all fall under this category. Hearing from friends and family at home is a joy that is unparalleled when living a world away from those important to us in our lives. It is easy to feel isolated and alone, when in a completely distinct culture with all new people and surrounded by a strange language. Knowing that I am missed, appreciated and loved is an invigorating life force. So thank you to all of you who continually support and love us, even when we are far far away.
The love I recieve from my husband also falls under this heading. I am one happily married wifey. My hubby is the love of my life and his love is a shining beacon in my life. I don't know what I would do without him.

7. Attention- So this is my attempt at being earnest. Not that it's a secret, but attention makes me happy. From the time I was two when I broke my foot and collarbone on two separate occasions jumping on a chair, when my mom dared to divert her attention from her darling daughter to cook a dinner. It has always been a part of my personality to like attention. It was something Kyle had to learn quickly when he first started dating me. His girlfriend (at the time), now wife likes attention and if she doesn't have it, you can be sure she will get it one way or another. Luckily, I haven't broken any limbs trying to get Kyle's attention. I have moved to more sophisticated methods such as following him around, poking him or giving him puppy dog eyes when I feel neglected. And my definition of neglected and normal people's definition are quite different.

8. Learning- If I could make a living being a professional student, I think that would probably be my career of choice. Knowledge expands our minds, and I am forever thirsty for more knowledge.

I admit however, I also adhere to the "ignorance is bliss" philosophy as well, which might seem like a paradox, but at least in my mind, I can still hold both statements as true: I love learning and ignorance is bliss. When I say that I subscribe to the philosophy above, I mean to say that I don't particularly enjoy learning about the hardships of humanity. I don't enjoy learning about the poverty of the world and the diseases. In fact, this type of learning doesn't make me feel happy at all. It just makes me feel wounded and helpless. The learning I enjoy is the kind that gives you power, the power to change and contribute, new ideas that expand my mind to think deeper with a different perspective than I previously held.

Wow, who would have thought I would have to work so hard at explaining a love of learning.

9. Home- I love traveling. I love seeing the world. I feel like traveling is almost more of an education than one can ever experience from a textbook. I thrive on traveling the world, meeting interesting new people and experiencing so many new enterprises. However, there is no contest, home is home and there is nothing quite like being home.

Home: San Antonio, Texas, that wonderfully colorful city where my family lives. It is the place I grew up, where all of my childhood memories reside. And although many of my friends have scattered across the world, it is where I met many of my closest friends and where most of them come home to, at least for special occasions.

Home: The US of A, our stupendous country where cheese doesn't cost me my entire paycheck, where I understand everything that is being spoken, and where I feel like I belong. One thing I have discovered on my travels is my appreciation of where I have come from. I come from an unconditionally loving and supportive family (in-laws included). I come from amazing friendships as close to family as non-blood relatives can come. I come from a country of opportunity, a country of diversity and a country of hope. The US has it's problems, but so does the rest of the world. We are not a singularly messed up country, we are not alone in corruption, the rest of the world doesn't have it all figured out either. And despite our so many problems, I would rather be from the US, from Texas, from my family and friends than anywhere else in the world.

10. Being creative- Have I mentioned that we are taking photography lessons? Creativity is a life force locked away behind bolted doors within the stone tower of my brain pounding to be let out, calling for it's prince charming to come release it. I have found many cracks in the aging wood to allow it's release in small doses, but it remains a prisoner, unsure of how to destroy its barriers. Recently, one of the things I have discovered about myself is that creating is what makes me truly happy. I want to create, I need to create to feel alive. I want to let that creativity stream out of me like rays off the sun. Creating is what life is about, without it, the world is leaden. We create our destinies, we are the author of our lives, we will create what future generations will stand upon and I want to be a contributor to that.

Writing has become an important creative outlet for me. It used to be, in high school, an activity that I abhorred as vehemently as pea soup, as it was always a difficult task, time consuming and a brain sucking strain. But from the start of my first blogging, while on our Italian study abroad program way back when in 2005, I discovered an enjoyment in the wielding of words, the interweaving of sentences to create a world I couldn't produce with speech. It has been my creative outlet for years now. It is still difficult, I was never a natural with words, but it is rewarding as it is the act of creating. I think, no, I know, there is more locked away waiting for it's prince.

Other ways I free it is through cooking with my hubby and now I am trying my hand at photography. One of these days, when I find that key, I will be as brilliantly bright as the sun for when we, as people, find our calling, we shine and sparkle with radiance.


Now for my awards... Some of my favorite blogs :)
Leslie and Peter
Living life on the Road less traveled
Houston Central
20 days/ Australia
A shelter from the storm
Kim is in Japan
Beautiful Mess
The Johnson Jingle
Eat your Veggies
Country Mouse