Happiness is a Journey ...

. . . not a destination.

This is a favorite quote of mine. The rubber stamp has "anon" at the bottom, but the official "Happiness is a Journey" quote and inspirational message that goes along with it were written by Crystal Boyd in 1997. (see her website or read below) This message has circulated throughout the internet for over 10 years with variant wording.

My sweet DIL Jami {Crazy Daisy Creations} made this for me and I intend to frame it. The photo is a bit dark and doesn't do it justice. It is simply beautiful!

Jami selected a beautiful patterned paper for the background and embellished with jute ribbon, blue grograin ribbon and bronze brads. The sentiment is framed with a scalloped rectangle. (Spellbinder die in Cuttlebug)
Sorry, I can't tell you who makes this stamp as all my rubber stamps are currently in baskets and boxes waiting for MW (Mr Wonderful) to move up and install my stamp shelves. You can just about imagine what he thinks of all this, can't you? :)
And now he knows how much STUFF I have ! :)

God bless all of you who've emailed or sent cards since I broke my ankle and had surgery. What a special group of blog friends you are! Your lovely cards brightened my day and made me SMILE! :) The past two weeks are a bit of a blur as I've taken my pain meds and spent most of the time in bed with my foot elevated. I've got such an awesome family & friends that have stopped in to visit, brought food (MW especially loves this!), magazines, flowers, cards & SMILES! What a blessing! I enjoyed watching all the Inauguration festivities, caught up on all the HGTV, TLC, Ellen & Oprah programs, and have even watched a few movies. (Thank U Vicki for the portable DVD player!) I'm happy to say that I've become much more proficient with the TV/DVR remote control and can now tape and watch whatever I want. LOL ~ What a Life!

Have a happy weekend and make time for YOU!
Smiles,

Happiness is a Journey ~

We convince ourselves that life will be better after we get married, have a baby, then another. Then we're frustrated that the kids aren't old enough and we'll be more content when they are. After that, we're frustrated that we have teenagers to deal with. We'll certainly be happy when they're out of that stage.

We tell ourselves that our life will be complete when our spouse gets his or her act together, when we get a nicer car, are able to go on a nice vacation, when we retire.
The truth is, there's no better time to be happy than right now. If not now, when?
Your life will always be filled with challenges. It's best to admit this to yourself and decide to be happy anyway.

One of my favorite quotes comes from Alfred D. Souza. He said, "For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin - real life. But there was always some obstacle in the way, something to be gotten through first, some unfinished business, time still to be served, or a debt to be paid. Then life would begin. At last it dawned on me that these obstacles were my life."
This perspective has helped me to see that there is no way to happiness. Happiness is the way. So, treasure every moment that you have and treasure it more because you shared it with someone special, special enough to spend your time with...and remember that time waits for no one.

So, stop waiting until you finish school, until you go back to school, until you lose ten pounds, until you gain ten pounds, until you have kids, until your kids leave the house, until you start work, until you retire, until you get married, until you get divorced, until Friday night, until Sunday morning, until you get a new car or home, until your car or home is paid off, until spring, until summer, until fall, until winter, until you're off welfare, until the first or fifteenth, until your song comes on, until you've had a drink, until you've sobered up, until you die, until you're born again to decide that there is no better time than right now to be happy.

Happiness is a journey, not a destination.

Copyright © 1997 Crystal Boyd