Welcome to my Daily Inspiration - Daily Quote. See today's daily inspirational quotes below.
May the world be kind to you, and may your own thoughts be gentle upon yourself. - Jonathan Lockwood Huie
Showing posts with label enjoy life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label enjoy life. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 27, 2026

My Burdens are Lightened When I Laugh at Myself


What appears very scary is probably nothing to fear when thoughtfully examined in the light.

Take time to laugh at yourself. Those who feel too important to laugh at themselves rob themselves, their family, and their friends of a great source of joy.

Grin your smile; giggle your laugh; unfurl your joy;
dash the last trace of your self-consciousness;
and cavort your most uninhibited play.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The most wasted of all days is one without laughter.
- e. e. cummings

The burden of the self is lightened when I laugh at myself.
- Rabindranath Tagore

Laugh at yourself and at life.
Not in the spirit of derision or whining self-pity,
but as a remedy, a miracle drug, that will ease your pain,
cure your depression, and help you to put in perspective
that seemingly terrible defeat and worry
with laughter at your predicaments,
thus freeing your mind to think clearly
toward the solution that is certain to come.
Never take yourself too seriously.
- Og Mandino

I will not play tug o' war.
I'd rather play hug o' war.
Where everyone hugs instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles and rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses, and everyone grins,
and everyone cuddles, and everyone wins.
- Shel Silverstein

Further reading: Lighten Up, Be Happy

Laughter

The Need for Humor

Not Too Serious
        

Sunday, August 30, 2026

Enjoy the Journey of Life


The journey between what you once were
and who you are now becoming
is where the dance of Life really takes place.
- Barbara De Angelis

Life is a Journey - Enjoy the Journey.
Life is not a race to test
who can finish first or who can end up with the most loot.
Rather, life is best enjoyed as a meander -
watching the view to left and right - above and below -
as the days slowly move past in dress review.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

March on. Do not tarry. To go forward
is to move toward perfection.
March on, and fear not the thorns,
or the sharp stones on life's path.
- Khalil Gibran

It is better to travel well than to arrive.
- The Buddha

Further reading: Enjoy Life

Be Flexible

Choose to Love Life

The Secret of Happiness

Simple Pleasures

Love Life
      

Sunday, July 12, 2026

Appreciate Small Pleasures


Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures.
- H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

The simplification of life is one of the steps to inner peace.
A persistent simplification will create an inner and outer well-being
that places harmony in one's life.
- Peace Pilgrim

Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength;
loving someone deeply gives you courage.
- Lao Tzu

To love. To be loved.
To never forget your own insignificance.
To never get used to the unspeakable violence
and the vulgar disparity of life around you.
To seek joy in the saddest places.
To pursue beauty to its lair.
To never simplify what is complicated
or complicate what is simple.
To respect strength, never power.
Above all, to watch. To try to understand.
To never look away. And never, never, to forget.
- Arundhati Roy

A small compassionate act enlarges the scope of community.
- Mary Anne Radmacher

A cool breeze.
A golden sunset.
A quiet walk on the beach, or the neighborhood street.
A furry friend snuggled next to you.
A cool drink of water.
A lick of an ice cream cone.
A loving hand on your shoulder.
A butterfly enjoying the flowers.
A rainbow after the storm.
Appreciate Small Pleasures.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Stand Rapt in Awe

Live Gently

Beyond Understanding

Compassion, Kindness, Humility
      

Thursday, July 9, 2026

Don't Make Assumptions; Don't Hold Expectations


Cultivate a Beginner Mind.
(be open to newness)

Bringing a childlike wonder
and a beginner's mind to life
maximizes both success and joy.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Become more and more innocent,
less knowledgeable and more childlike.
Take life as fun -
because that's precisely what it is!
- Osho

Innocence isn't ever lost completely;
we just need to maintain our goodness to regain it.
- Jewel

Children are born innocent.
Before they are domesticated they live in the moment,
love without fear, and don't even think about the opinions of others.
- don Miguel Ruiz

Over the years, we come to see life as we expect it to be. We make assumptions that support how we "KNOW" that things ARE. We make expectations of others and of ourselves based on those assumptions. For example, we "KNOW" what kinds of people are "good" people and which kinds or people are "bad" people.

Imagine what life would be like if you could forget all the past resentments and perceived offenses that color your thinking and your emotions. Buddhists call that state "beginner mind" - an opening to experience life without the jaundiced filter of past disappointments, to move past assumptions about the nature of life, and really SEE your surroundings - especially the people you interact with - with new eyes.

Today is your day to shed the scales from your eyes.

Further reading: Reverence


Natural Web
    

Tuesday, July 7, 2026

Rise Above the Madness of the World


May your life always be Counterpoint to the Clamor of the World.
May you delight in Dancing Lightly With Life.
May you soar on eagle wings, high above the madness of the world.
May you always sing Melody in the Symphony of Your Life.
May you taste, smell, and touch your dreams of a beautiful tomorrow.
May your sun always shine, and your sky be forever blue.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

When we get too caught up in the busyness of the world,
we lose connection with one another - and ourselves.
- Jack Kornfield

Wherever I am, the world comes after me.
It offers me its busyness.
It does not believe that I do not want it.
- Mary Oliver

The world clamors, "Do more! Be all that you can be!"
But our Father whispers, "Be still and know that I am God [Psalm 46:10]."
- Joanna Weaver

Today's affirmation:
I am Counterpoint to the Clamor of the World.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie



Make Healthy Choices to Relieve Stress

Try Meditation

12 Ways to De-Stress Your Life
    

Sunday, July 5, 2026

Breathe, Smile, Create Happiness


Just smiling goes a long way toward making you feel better about life.
And when you feel better about life, your life is better.
- Art Linkletter

First ask yourself: What is the worst that can happen?
Then prepare to accept it.
Then proceed to improve on the worst.
- Dale Carnegie

The lure of the distant and the difficult is deceptive.
The great opportunity is where you are.
- John Burroughs

Smile and the world smiles with you.
- Anonymous

Peace begins with a smile.
- Mother Teresa

Always do the best you can,
and everything else will take care of itself.
Focus your energies on doing what you can
rather than worrying about what you can't.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

A smile that begins as an effort and a pretense quickly grows to become genuine,
and given time, a habit of happiness. In the words of Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh, "Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

Inner Smile Exercise:
1. Breath slowly, deeply, and consciously.
2. Close your eyes and set the corners of your mouth in just the slightest smile.
3. Visualize your smile growing larger and larger, and your happiness increasing.

Today's affirmation:
Every day in every way I am getting better and better.
- Émile Coué

Further reading: Ten Little Tips to Feel Happier Right Now

No Regrets

Beyond Your Worries
   

Friday, July 3, 2026

I Hope You Dance with Life


Today is your day to dance lightly with life,
sing wild songs of adventure,
invite rainbows and butterflies out to play,
soar your spirit, and unfurl your joy.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Your life within God's arms,
Your dance within God's arms,
Is already Perfect!
- Hafiz

When you dance, your purpose is not to get to a certain place on the floor.
It's to enjoy each step along the way.
- Wayne Dyer

Life is like dancing.
If we have a big floor, many people will dance.
Some will get angry when the rhythm changes.
But life is changing all the time.
- don Miguel Ruiz

Life may not be the party we hoped for,
but while we are here we might as well dance.
- Anonymous

Dance like no one is watching,
love like you'll never be hurt.
Sing like no one is listening.
Live life like it's heaven on earth.
- Anonymous (various attributions and alternate phrasings)

Happiness lies in the joy of achievement
and the thrill of creative effort.
- Franklin D. Roosevelt

When you get the choice to sit it out or dance,
I hope you dance.
- Lee Ann Womack

Further reading: How to Find Joy in Our Troubled Lives

Choose to Love Life

Appreciate Today

Today is Your Day (long form of my poem)
    

Saturday, June 6, 2026

Find Something Joyful, TODAY


Find something to be joyful about, TODAY.

It is good to have an end to journey towards;
but it is the journey that matters in the end.
- Ursula K. Le Guin

Happiness isn't at the end of the rainbow.
Happiness is at the beginning of the rainbow.
Following the rainbow is happiness,
not getting to the end of it.
- Werner Erhard

To live only for some future goal is shallow.
It's the sides of the mountain that sustain life, not the top.
- Robert M. Pirsig

Come dress yourself in love, let the journey begin.
- Francesca da Rimini

Further reading: Stay Adaptable

The Secret of Happiness

Be Flexible

Choosing to Love Life
       

Sunday, April 12, 2026

Time Has No Inherent Meaning.

 


Time, like life itself, has no inherent meaning.
We give our own meaning to time as to life.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

There is only one time that is important - NOW!
It is the most important time because
it is the only time that we have any power.
- Leo Tolstoy

Do not dwell in the past,
do not dream of the future,
concentrate the mind on the present moment.
- The Buddha

You will never find time for anything.
If you want time you must make it.
- Charles Buxton

We must use time creatively.
- Martin Luther King, Jr.

Who forces time is pushed back by time;
who yields to time finds time on his side.
- The Talmud

Time stays long enough for anyone who will use it.
- Leonardo da Vinci

Don't fight against time.
Develop a comfort and friendship with time.
Time enjoyed is never time wasted.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Today's affirmation: Time is my friend.

Further reading: Your Relationship with Time

Master of Patience

Make Time For Yourself


Everything Happens In Its Own Time

Your To-Do List
        

Wednesday, February 11, 2026

All Life is Change


What's done is done.
- William Shakespeare

All life is change.
Release your attachment to the way things have been,
and wend your way joyfully
through life's unfolding majesty.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

There's a trick to the Graceful Exit.
It begins with the vision to recognize when a job, a life stage,
a relationship is over - and to let go.
It means leaving what's over without denying its value.
- Ellen Goodman

Stop holding on to the past.
1) Release your regrets about whatever you may have done or failed to do that turned out poorly.
2) Forgive others for whatever they may have done or failed to do that caused you harm.
3) Declare today to be a new beginning.
Let go of the past and move on with creating a joyful new future for yourself.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Before moving on, you have to clear away your cherished beliefs.
- Dick Raymond

Further reading: Let Go of Your Attachment to Your Plans

Illusions Lost

A Better Plan

Don Miguel Ruiz: The Four Agreements - The Wisdom of the Ages in Four Sound-Bites 
      

Sunday, February 1, 2026

Never Take Life for Granted

 


As soon as man does not take his existence for granted,
but beholds it as something unfathomably mysterious,
thought begins.
- Albert Schweitzer

God is not what you imagine,
or what you think you understand.
If you understand you have failed.
- Saint Augustine

Be thankful that life is a mystery.
There is so much we can never know.
Breathe deeply and relax into the not-knowing.
There is much that we do not have to know in order to live joyfully.
We Can Never Understand Our World, But We Can Still Enjoy It.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The world is incomprehensible.
We won't ever understand it;
we won't ever unravel its secrets.
Thus we must treat the world as it is:
a sheer mystery.
- Carlos Castaneda

Uncertainty that comes from knowledge
(knowing what you don't know)
is different from uncertainty coming from ignorance.
- Isaac Asimov

Further reading: Wonder and Mystery

Pause to Wonder

Cherish Mystery

Life: Mystery and Riddle
    

Friday, January 9, 2026

What Values Define YOUR Life?


It is of the small joys and little pleasures
that the greatest of our days are built.
- Mary Anne Radmacher

Maybe life isn't really as complicated
as we make it out to be.
Perhaps a simple child-like attitude would create
a less stressful and happier life.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

In dwelling, live close to the ground.
In thinking, keep to the simple.
In conflict, be fair and generous.
In governing, don't try to control.
In work, do what you enjoy.
In family life, be completely present.
- Lao Tzu

Today's project:
Meaningful and joyful lives are lived by adhering to one's personal value system - one's principles. Today, write your six to eight most important values on an index card, and refer to that card as you go about your life today.

Further reading: Ten Little Tips to Feel Happier Right Now

The Secret of Happiness

A Simple Life

What If Happiness...
     

Thursday, January 8, 2026

Choose to Accept and Love All of Life


Happiness doesn't depend on any external conditions,
it is governed by our mental attitude.
- Dale Carnegie

Things turn out best for the people
who make the best of the way things turn out.
- Art Linkletter

Live and work but do not forget to play,
to have fun in life and really enjoy it.
- Eileen Caddy

Happiness depends upon ourselves.
- Aristotle

Today's affirmation:
I become happy when I choose to accept and love all of life.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: The Secret of Happiness

Radiate Your Happiness to the World

Say NO to Stress

Finding Joy

Ten Little Tips to Feel Happier Right Now
      

Friday, December 19, 2025

Appreciate Simple Joys


Most of the luxuries, and many of the so-called comforts of life
are not only not indispensable,
but positive hindrances to the elevation of mankind.
- Henry David Thoreau

The essence of life is not in
the great victories and grand failures,
but in the simple joys.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Wealth is the ability to fully experience life.
- Henry David Thoreau

The greatest wealth is to live content with little.
- Plato

Further reading: Life Really Is Good

Choose Joy Anyway

Calm During Storms

Radiate Light and Love
     

 

Tuesday, December 16, 2025

Find something to enjoy and to appreciate about TODAY

 


Find something to enjoy and to appreciate about TODAY.

Today's affirmation:
My Cup Runneth Over - My Life Is Abundant.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Not what we have,
but what we enjoy,
constitutes our abundance.
- Epicurus

Doing what you love is the cornerstone of having abundance in your life.
- Wayne Dyer

Our journey into consciousness of wealth begins
with the realization that we have already arrived.
- Michael Beckwith

Abundance is not something we acquire.
It is something we tune into.
- Wayne Dyer

Further reading: Know that You have been Blessed

Have Gratitude for THIS Moment

Is your glass of life half empty? Or half full?

Appreciate Your Abundance

Friday, December 12, 2025

Put Events in Perspective

 


We have a good life when we manage to live with both
satisfied and unsatisfied needs,
when we are not obsessed by what is beyond our reach.
- Kjell Magne Bondevik

Do what you can, and do it well.
Accept the rest with equanimity, and trust in God.
No one can ever do more than that.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Happiness is a butterfly, which, when pursued,
is always just beyond your grasp,
but which, if you will sit down quietly,
may alight upon you.
- Nathaniel Hawthorne

Live Well, Love Much, Laugh Often.
- Anonymous

Boredom is the feeling that everything is a waste of time;
serenity, that nothing is.
- Thomas Szasz

Laugh at yourself and at life.
Not in the spirit of derision or whining self-pity,
but as a remedy, a miracle drug, that will ease your pain,
cure your depression, and help you to put in perspective
that seemingly terrible defeat and worry
with laughter at your predicaments,
thus freeing your mind to think clearly toward the solution
that is certain to come. Never take yourself too seriously.
- Og Mandino

The difference between serenity and boredom is whether you choose to enjoy it.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Monday, October 27, 2025

Unfurl Your Joy

 


What appears very scary is probably nothing to fear when thoughtfully examined in the light.

Take time to laugh at yourself. Those who feel too important to laugh at themselves rob themselves, their family, and their friends of a great source of joy.

Grin your smile; giggle your laugh; unfurl your joy;
dash the last trace of your self-consciousness;
and cavort your most uninhibited play.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

The most wasted of all days is one without laughter.
- e. e. cummings

The burden of the self is lightened when I laugh at myself.
- Rabindranath Tagore

Laugh at yourself and at life.
Not in the spirit of derision or whining self-pity,
but as a remedy, a miracle drug, that will ease your pain,
cure your depression, and help you to put in perspective
that seemingly terrible defeat and worry
with laughter at your predicaments,
thus freeing your mind to think clearly
toward the solution that is certain to come.
Never take yourself too seriously.
- Og Mandino

I will not play tug o' war.
I'd rather play hug o' war.
Where everyone hugs instead of tugs,
Where everyone giggles and rolls on the rug,
Where everyone kisses, and everyone grins,
and everyone cuddles, and everyone wins.
- Shel Silverstein

Further reading: Lighten Up, Be Happy


The Need for Humor

Not Too Serious
        

Saturday, August 30, 2025

The Dance of Life

 


The journey between what you once were
and who you are now becoming
is where the dance of Life really takes place.
- Barbara De Angelis

Life is a Journey - Enjoy the Journey.
Life is not a race to test
who can finish first or who can end up with the most loot.
Rather, life is best enjoyed as a meander -
watching the view to left and right - above and below -
as the days slowly move past in dress review.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

March on. Do not tarry. To go forward
is to move toward perfection.
March on, and fear not the thorns,
or the sharp stones on life's path.
- Khalil Gibran

It is better to travel well than to arrive.
- The Buddha

Further reading: Enjoy Life

Be Flexible

Choose to Love Life

The Secret of Happiness

Simple Pleasures

Love Life
      

Saturday, July 12, 2025

Give Thanks for Small Pleasures


Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures.
- H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

The simplification of life is one of the steps to inner peace.
A persistent simplification will create an inner and outer well-being
that places harmony in one's life.
- Peace Pilgrim

Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength;
loving someone deeply gives you courage.
- Lao Tzu

To love. To be loved.
To never forget your own insignificance.
To never get used to the unspeakable violence
and the vulgar disparity of life around you.
To seek joy in the saddest places.
To pursue beauty to its lair.
To never simplify what is complicated
or complicate what is simple.
To respect strength, never power.
Above all, to watch. To try to understand.
To never look away. And never, never, to forget.
- Arundhati Roy

A small compassionate act enlarges the scope of community.
- Mary Anne Radmacher

A cool breeze.
A golden sunset.
A quiet walk on the beach, or the neighborhood street.
A furry friend snuggled next to you.
A cool drink of water.
A lick of an ice cream cone.
A loving hand on your shoulder.
A butterfly enjoying the flowers.
A rainbow after the storm.
Appreciate Small Pleasures.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Further reading: Stand Rapt in Awe

Live Gently

Beyond Understanding

Compassion, Kindness, Humility
      

 

Wednesday, July 9, 2025

Assumptions and Expectations Create Suffering

 


Cultivate a Beginner Mind.
(be open to newness)

Bringing a childlike wonder
and a beginner's mind to life
maximizes both success and joy.
- Jonathan Lockwood Huie

Become more and more innocent,
less knowledgeable and more childlike.
Take life as fun -
because that's precisely what it is!
- Osho

Innocence isn't ever lost completely;
we just need to maintain our goodness to regain it.
- Jewel

Children are born innocent.
Before they are domesticated they live in the moment,
love without fear, and don't even think about the opinions of others.
- don Miguel Ruiz

Over the years, we come to see life as we expect it to be. We make assumptions that support how we "KNOW" that things ARE. We make expectations of others and of ourselves based on those assumptions. For example, we "KNOW" what kinds of people are "good" people and which kinds or people are "bad" people.

Imagine what life would be like if you could forget all the past resentments and perceived offenses that color your thinking and your emotions. Buddhists call that state "beginner mind" - an opening to experience life without the jaundiced filter of past disappointments, to move past assumptions about the nature of life, and really SEE your surroundings - especially the people you interact with - with new eyes.

Today is your day to shed the scales from your eyes.

Further reading: Reverence


Natural Web
    
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