Just knowing...

There's a saying that I sometimes refer to because I love it- Follow Your Bliss. It was uttered by Joseph Campbell as a surefire way of finding your purpose in life. But it's not always that easy. You know how when you were young, you asked some trusted adult, how do you know when you're in love? Their answer was most likely- you just know. Well, the mind can play tricks on you in matters of love and happiness. You can have an entire comprehensive list prepared of all the reasons you are in love, and be completely convinced that you are, but if you have to ask the question, you probably aren't. Likewise with following your bliss. I have known several people, myself included, who have lived their lives sleeping in late, watching tv on the couch, spending countless hours with their partner, believing themselves to be happy. Who wouldn't be happy doing all those things? The answer is everyone. At least not only these things.

This weekend I got no sleep. I worked hard, having the sore muscles (in places I didn't even know I had muscles) to prove it. I woke up early and was go go go all day. I barely watched a shred of tv. I didn't see my husband. Yet, it was the best weekend I've had in a long time. I was walking through my friend's hotel this morning at the ungodly hour of 7:30am smelling the breakfast and being so glad I was up to smell it. Not for any particular reason. I wasn't even going to eat the breakfast. So, for a notorious sleeper-inner, this was surprising to me and took me off guard.

Many people may think that following your bliss means being lazy, doing whatever you want, not contributing. But they are wrong. Following your bliss is hard. This weekend I tried something new. I drove more hours than I slept. I made a new friend. I left a new friend. I lived. You can't do that on the living room couch. Everyday I am learning more and more of what it means to be happy, as well as the fact that I have complete control over whether I choose that happiness or whether I forsake it. I could have stayed in my safe bubble and not ventured out. But I would have lost out. And though I may have had fun being with my husband and sleeping in and loafing, I wouldn't have experienced life. Life is out there. And so many people are sitting on the couch in the same place, it breaks my heart. This weekend I was surrounded by strange and interesting people. I took walks with the breeze and ate lunch in a beautiful park. I played with the cutest baby in the world. I took amazing photographs and made myself proud. I smelled breakfast. I followed my bliss. And, I just knew.


My new friend.