Walking and thinking about happiness

It's Sunday and the clocks went back sometime very early this morning. So it will mean come 3 p.m. ish the sky gets darker.  But if this is anything to gauge autumn by then it will be pretty mild.  I went out for the usual Sunday morning walk, because I very much needed to get out and walk. On account of being fatter than I was a week ago.  Although the decision to go out might have turned the other way, I might very well of decided not to go out, on account of the clouds. Lots of cloud cover, not quite ominous but enough to possibly sway the feeble hearted and non committed. Today though I was committed and so about 9:30 a.m was out the front door and doing my Sunday thing. Walking. Air is such an important thing, especially if you need to breath. I needed to breath and it was great, I don't know why but there seemed to be more cars on the road this Sunday, generally they don't always hit the roads so quickly, but this Sunday there certainly was a lot more than normal. I guess the people in the cars needed to get out as well, except they were not doing the exercise and breathing part, it's much easier pressing peddles than taking steps.

I walked up through the woods and as I did so kicked up dried crispy brown paper like leaves. It's almost the same feeling you get when walking on fresh snow. Not the same but similar. At one point I wondered should a 50 something man be walking and kicking his feet through autumnal leaves? Nobody was about so it didn't matter and then if there were people about it still wouldn't matter. I wore my yellow t-shirt which has a big iconic smiley face on it. The simple text like smiley face but not text. I felt happy this morning, infectiously happy, how weird it might of been to have seen me, the happy fellow out on a walk. Sparkling said told me in a conversation this evening she found herself reading up on happiness and found it was to do with social contact and family.  Mind I think this can be true it can also be true family or social contact can make you unhappy. But having a walk, well, I can't think of having a Sunday walk not making me feel exhilarated and happy.  I love them. Except as winter grows on they may likely become colder, wetter or not at all if it's just too dreary outside.

I been catching up on some old youtube video's of a group called Shaft, one of the members I used to know but he passed away earlier this year.  He was called Trevor.  He was a really nice person to know and although in most of the videos he momentarily is seen there is more opportunity to see him in the song Kiki Riri Boom, he has a smile and it looks like was having a lot of fun in Miami where the vid was shot.  He is probably one of the most famous people I know, given I don't know that many people at all. I thought as I listened to the music and the happy dancing that what better a way can a person be remembered than bringing happiness and having a great smile.  This reminds me of a quote:

"Be the change that you wish to see in the world." - Mahatma Ghandi

I want to be more happy and I want people to be attracted to this same happiness and for it to infect them and make them happy as well. Unfortunately it is not something I currently get from most of the people around me, most of which seem to be depressives.  I think they could all do with an inoculation of the happiness drug.  Free of course. A smile and laughter can go a long way to lighting up stressful situations as well.  Although Ghandi probably had something else in mind when he said these words, possibly along the lines of forgiveness and love. The same measure you could attribute to have been preached successfully by Nelson Mandela. Who I might add also had a wonderful smile and attracted much warmth from many people.

If there is a secret to happiness it is probably all in the mind and attitude plays a big part.  Damn it is deep stuff but it always takes itself very lightly.