Reminding you to make the "Happiness Decision." Letting you know about our meeting dates, giving you happiness information, and your latest copy of the Be Happy Zone Article's that are published every other Wednesday in the Fairfield Citizen-News. At the end of this newsletter you can read the latest article called: TRAIN FOR HAPPINESS.

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do." - John Wooden
Think Smart, Look Smart, Be Smart...Be Happy! - Lionel

Happ-E-Quote:) "To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return,
you will receive untold peace and happiness." - Robert Muller

Happ-E-Mail:) Dr. Bernie Siegel sent this in to us. He said I may quote him. "And when you can't be happy on your own there are always drugs and alcohol." - Dr. Bernie Siegel

Bernie also likes some of Woody Allen's thoughts: "Life is full of miserableness, loneliness, unhappiness and suffering and it's all over much too quickly." - Woody Allen

"We have come to a critical crossroad
One path leads to despair and utter loneliness
The other to total extinction
Let us pray we have the ability to choose correctly." - Woody Allen
Thank you Bernie, for sharing your wit and help us to laugh with you. What else can we expect from the "Doctor of The Soul." He shows us that laughter and happiness is medicine we should take every day.

Happ-E-Quote:) "...Recognize that if you don't like your life and if you can't change your external circumstances at this point, you can change your attitude toward your life. You can say, "I choose to be happy. I choose to view what I do every day as a way of contributing love." When you go about your life with this attitude, you'll find that your circumstances do begin to change." - Bernie Siegel, MD

Happ-E-Mail:) I came across 2 books you might be interested in;
1) Excuse Me Your Life Is Waiting by Lynn Grabhorn
This shows a new way of looking at things and consciously creating the life you want. And there is also a Playbook by the same name that gives exercises to uncover what's stopping you from things you want to create. It's fun and an easy read.
2) The Frontal Lobes Supercharge by Neil Slade ( www.NeilSlade.com)
This one uses the power of your brain to release feelings of happiness and bliss with a simple visualization. And I must say it works quite well! He's got a great web-site that has a lot of information on it.

Enjoy! Can't wait till the meetings start again! Sincerely, Rachel Perzanowski

Happ-E-Mail:) My name is Joanne Blake from Milford and I heard you speak at our day care network meeting tonight. You are very inspiring and I would like to subscribe to your newsletter. Thank you, Joanne

Happ-E-Quote:) "Adversity is another way to measure the greatness of individuals. I never had a crisis that didn't make me stronger." - Lou Holtz

Happ-E-Mail:) I was at your Seminar for the Family Childcare Network last night. It was the best seminar I have ever attended, I want to thank you. You have made me look at life from a different view and I am having a wonderful day today. I take too many things for granted (myself, my children, my husband), and you taught me to appreciate the small things in life. I never dreamed two hours could have such an amazing impact on my life! Thank you so much, Deborah Gilebbi

Happ-E-Quote:) "I am a little pencil in the hand of a writing God who is sending a love letter to the world." - Mother Teresa"

Happ-E-Mail:) Marty Evans sent us this e-mail called: Wonders
A group of students were asked to list what they thought were the present "Seven Wonders of the World." Though there were some disagreements, the following received the most votes:
1. Egypt's Great Pyramids
2. Taj Mahal
3. Grand Canyon
4. Panama Canal
5. Empire State Building
6. St. Peter's Basilica
7. China's Great Wall

While gathering the votes, the teacher noted that one student had not finished her paper yet. So she asked the girl if she was having trouble with her list. The girl replied, "Yes, a little. I couldn't quite make up my mind because there were so many." The teacher said, "Well, tell us what you have, and maybe we can help."
The girl hesitated, then read, "I think the 'Seven Wonders of the World' are:
1. to see
2. to hear
3. to touch
4. to taste
5. to feel
6. to laugh
7. and to love."
The room was so quiet you could have heard a pin drop. The things we overlook as simple and ordinary and that we take for granted are truly wondrous! A gentle reminder - that the most precious things in life cannot be built by hand or bought by man. "Each day comes bearing it's own gifts. Untie the Ribbons."

Happ-E-Quote:) "There is no such thing in anyone's life as an unimportant day." - Alexander Woollcott

Happ-E-Mail:) I have been meaning to mention a book to you that I discovered a couple years or so back. It's titled "Excuse Me, Your Life Is Waiting!" by Lynn Grabhorn. It is a wonderful book on the ways we manifest our lives (or not)!, and how everything is determined by our feelings, (most especially the importance of the good ones hence the connection with your Happiness teachings). It was one of those books that spoke so very clearly from the first serendipitous moment I'd picked it up in the library, where I still recall the instantaneous excitement standing there reading its first words.

I give it my hearty recommendation. I intend to read it yet again. In the meantime I've several pages of notes from it here to keep me mindful, and of course I always have "Food For Thought" by Lionel Ketchian here to do me likewise. Which I've also wanted to let you know I keep always handy for whatever morsel it might wish to offer me up at any given moment! -- and many they have been! -- so many thanks again for that! Anyway, I think you'll find "Excuse Me..." a very enjoyable and heartening read. In Pursuit (and Maintenance) Of Perpetual Happiness! (-- and then the propagation of it!), Barry Powel

Happ-E-Quote:) "People always find it easier to be a result of the past rather than a cause of the future." - Anonymous

Happ-E-Mail:) Great Newsletter as usual.... You are clearly a conduit to happiness for many as you continue to make a difference every moment of ever day. I am looking forward to seeing Winged Migration. Sounds terrific. Another movie worth seeing is The Whale Rider. If you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. Can't say enough about it. Be well and continued love, blessings, and happiness, Marianne

Happ-E-Quote:) "Even in the common affairs of life, in love, friendship, and marriage, how little security have we when we trust our happiness in the hands of others!" - Paul Aubuchon

Happ-E-Mail:) Being thankful seems to be a cornerstone for happiness. I am thankful to have received, on a particularly dreary morning, the September 1 newsletter. Much of the contents are exactly what I needed to take in at this crossroad of my life. Hugs and love to all, Dottie

Happ-E-Quote:) "The only way to have a friend is to be one." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Happ-E-Mail:) Thank you for your newsletter. It is always uplifting. Bless you, for your good work with the Happiness Newsletter. Kind regards, Marianna (in England)

Happ-E-Quote:) "In a moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing to do. The worst thing you can do is nothing." - Theodore Roosevelt

Happ-E-Mail:) I would like to subscribe to the Happ-E-Newsletter. I was introduced to it by a very dear friend of mine. One of these days I hope to make a meeting or two. Thank you! Mary Ann

Happ-E-Quote:) "The fly cannot be driven away by getting angry at it." - African Proverb

Happ-E-Mail:) I am passing your email on to LIONEL KETCHIAN who is the "happiness" guru. He prints a monthly "happiness" newsletter, has published books on the subject and he holds monthly "happiness" meeting at the public library in Fairfield. He is a person of note in the "happiness" field and, I am proud to say one of the nicest people I have ever met. By copy of this email to him I will ask that he put you on his newsletter email list. I think you will enjoy it. JOHN ANGLACE

Happ-E-Quote:) "Tomorrow hopes that we have learned something from yesterday." -John Wayne

Happ-E-Mail:) I really like reading your monthly articles, they have helped me climb out of my depression, I read one every day in the morning, I look at the names of them and read the one that seems best for each day. Thank you for having this wonderful site. I tell lots of people about it, and how it can help them understand more about life and happiness. Thanks again, Paul from Northern Ontario Canada

Happ-E-Mail:) Thought you'd enjoy more verses on Happiness. - Sid Madwed

I'd rather see a smiling face than one that wears a frown
For a frown is a smile that's been turned upside down.
Stand on your head if you must, to make your frown a smile.
Change your attitude and you can live a happy life-style.

HAPPINESS POEM by Sid Madwed www.madwed.com

Happ-E-Quote:) "Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy." - Thich Nhat Hanh

HAPPINESS CLUB MEETING:) Join us for our next Happiness Club meeting Thursday, September 18, from 7:00-8:45 p.m. The topic is "TIME FOR HAPPINESS" by Lionel Ketchian and Lynette Turner. Don't miss this valuable meeting, and meet some wonderful people using happiness in their lives.

NEXT HAPPINESS CLUB MEETING:)
Topic:) "TIME FOR HAPPINESS"
Date:) September 18, 2003
Time:) 7:00 - 8:45 P.M.
Place:) Fairfield Public Library
In the:) Rotary Room
Address:) 1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield, CT

Open to the public and admission is free. www.happinessclub.com.
Call Lionel Ketchian (203) 258-7777 or E-mail: PrintLRK@aol.com

Directions:
From New York - I- 95, Exit 21, Mill Plain Road. Right at bottom of ramp. Under railroad overpass make a left at light (Post Rd.), 1/2 mile on right at the corner.
From New Haven - I- 95, Exit 22, North Benson Road. Left at bottom of ramp. Under railroad overpass make a right at light (Post Rd.), 1/2 mile on left at the corner.

Happ-E-Quote:) "The really happy man is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour." - Anonymous

BE HAPPY ZONE
Fairfield Citizen-News
September 10, 2003

TRAIN FOR HAPPINESS
By Lionel Ketchian

All abroad! If you want to learn the art of being happy you better jump on board. Now is your chance to get on the right track … the happy track. What track have you been running on? If you have been feeling off track lately, maybe it's time for you to train for happiness. The great thing about being happy is you know for sure that you are on the right track. When you're feeling unhappy you know you are off track. You feel like you have been derailed. You don't know where you're going or which direction to go.

Being happy is the most powerful decision you can ever make. It gets you what you want out of life and gets you where you want to be. As Henry David Thoreau said: "If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours." Notice Thoreau says that if you advance confidently in the direction of your dreams. You have to know what direction you are going. Happiness is a direction.

Imagine a railroad track that stretches out as far as you can see. You know that the track has been laid out to its final destination. When railroad tracks are laid, people have to know where to lay it and in what direction they have to go. You know that they will travel over hills and mountains. You will ride the track through tunnels that go through mountains that cannot be climbed. You will go over bridges so you can get to the other side of rivers that cannot otherwise be easily crossed. The important thing is that the track is already laid out. All the work is done and all you have to do is stay on it to get over all the tough terrain. The train for happiness is much the same way. Just stay on track and don't get off track.

If you do get off track, all you have to do is realize it and get back on track again. Most of the time our problem is that we don't know where the track is. Happiness is the track to get you where we want to go. All you have to do is train for happiness. In order to train for happiness you must run your own train. You have to constantly keep watch to make sure you stay on the happy track. When something happens to you don't get off track. That's how trouble starts. Just stay on the happy track and move forward. As you move ahead the scenery changes and improves. As Burton Hillis said, "Happiness is not a destination. It is a method of life."

The important thing is that you will be in charge of your train to happiness. But once you get off track you let the problem become the track you run on. The problem track will not get you anywhere. So keep track of the problem while you're on the happy track. For one thing you will be moving in the right direction. If you can solve the problem then the solution will present itself and you can make the right choice. Staying on the right track is the name of the game.

Most people confuse the happy track with the racetrack. The racetrack does not go anywhere. The racetrack just goes around and ends up in the same place you started. Just because you are going fast and passing everyone else does not mean you are getting somewhere. The happy track may look slow but you know where you're headed all the time. Besides, you will enjoy the view and collect wonderful experiences for yourself along the way.

The happiness decision is the train. The track is happiness and you staying on it is the power of choice that you exercise. When you are happy you're on the right track. When you're off track you find yourself unhappy. Think of tracks as your decision.

When you make the happiness decision you lay the tracks for the direction you want to go. You will always be headed in the right direction as long as you keep your train on the tracks. With a name like Lionel, who is better to tell you about trains than me? Like a derailed train, unhappiness makes you feel like you're going nowhere. When a train is on track and traveling forward the scenery is changing and things look as if they are moving along well. When we are happy, we are the ones that are moving fast. Happiness is the fuel that allows us to experience that. Unhappiness prevents us from seeing the scenery. We are off track and we have derailed ourselves. We have done this to our self and we can get back on track any time we want.

Now your purpose in traveling through life will be to remain happy. This now becomes your discipline in life. Stay happy and when you notice you are not happy, choose happiness again through your discipline of choice to stay on the happy track.

I leave you with a thought from Walt Whitman "Afoot and lighthearted, I take to the open road; healthy, free, the world before me, the long brown path before me, leading wherever I choose. Henceforth I whimper no more, postpone no more, need nothing..."

You are the reason we have Happiness Club meetings. Think of us as your TRACK TEAM and come on down to our next meeting on September 18, from 7:00-8:45 p.m. The topic is "Time for Happiness," and will be held in the Rotary Room, at the Fairfield Public Library, located at 1080 Old Post Road. There is no charge for the meeting or the happiness power you will get. Isn't it time for you to be happy? Make tracks for this track meet now.

Lionel Ketchian is the founder of the Happiness Club, a Happiness Coach, and can be reached at PrintLRK@aol.com. The website is www.HappinessClub.com.

Share a smile and forward this motivating Happ-E-Newsletter to your friends and family members you care about. Brighten their day by giving them a FREE Newsletter. Or, it's FREE, and easy to subscribe, just send your blank e-mail to happinessclub@aol.com, or subscribe online at: www.happinessclub.com.

Happiness is an inner state of well being. A state of well being that enables you to profit from your highest: thoughts, wisdom, intelligence, common sense, emotions, health, and spiritual values in your life. - Lionel Ketchian

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Life is full of opportunities. Go For It! Carpe diem!

© Copyright 2003, Lionel R. Ketchian, all rights reserved.