Happ-E-Newsletter for November 1, 2003

Welcome My Dear Friend,

Happiness is total consciousness. happiness is the peak fulfillment of life. It is a human's own doing, his greatest power and liberty. Happiness is not external to man, it is a genial force in him. It cannot be elsewhere. It is not part of nature or of the world, it is an attribute, an essence of the human person." - Dr. Robert Muller

I had the opportunity of a lifetime to speak with and interview Dr. Robert Muller, a former Assistant Secretary-General of the United nations and his wonderful wife Barbara. I consider Dr. Muller a leading thinker and pioneer in his work on bringing Peace, Love and Happiness to the world. This issue of the Happy Newsletter is devoted to this great man and his ideas. You can receive his free daily e-mail to wake up to a Good Morning World!
Click here: Good Morning World - Robert Muller's Daily Email Message For A Better World. GoodMorningWorld.org

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: DR. ROBERT MULLER & THE UNITED NATIONS.

"Love for life is the fundamental ingredient of all recipes for happiness." - Dr. Robert Muller
Think Smart, Look Smart, Be Smart...Be Happy! - Lionel

Happ-E-Mail:) I love the letter of Allie, that she found control over the well-being of her life and your answer: start being happy and use that state of mind to experience everything in your life. Happily yours, Dr. Robert Muller

Happ-E-Quote:) "Happiness is a state of mind, a click inside us, a conscious, determined decision or will to embrace with fascination, enthusiasm (that is, by God possessed), the entire world and creation. - Dr. Robert Muller

Happ-E-Mail:) I just re-read the newsletter for the umpteenth time and was struck by the letter from Allie in Atlanta. I am sorry that a young girl has to go through such hard times, but, so impressed that she has learned what it has taken me 58 years to learn. You go, girl! Kathleen

Happ-E-Quote:) "I am happy, I am content, I am grateful for all my blessings, I am living a beautiful life. Thank you, O God, for Your miraculous gift. I have so much. I will now work for the happiness of others." - Dr. Robert Muller

Happ-E-Mail:) The half hour video movie, "Finding Happiness," will be on TV again in Connecticut. Here is the upcoming happiness video TV schedule for "Dolly Curtis Interviews," on Telemedia Cable in the Connecticut Valley airing on Friday evenings at 8 PM on channel 10 on November 7th and 14th. This includes Shelton and Huntington, Derby and Ansonia, Beacon Falls, Oxford, Seymour and Bethany, and Naugatuck.

On Comcast Cable in the Danbury area airing on Monday evenings at 9 PM on channel 23 on November 10th and 17th. This includes Danbury and Ridgefield, Bethel, and surrounding towns.

Hope to see you Nov. 18th, at the next happiness club meeting. Hugs, Dolly Curtis

Happ-E-Quote:) "From the prodigy of birth to the mystery of death, man can indeed partake in all creation if he switches on, deep inside, the will for life, the decision for happiness, the option for love. I have "decided" to love my life, to throw in my gauntlet for it, to believe in it, to find it exalting in every respect, at every moment, from the beginning to the end." - Dr. Robert Muller

Happ-E-Mail:) Dear Lionel, You have made Dr. Robert Muller a very happy man!!!!! You should have seen him smile when he was reading your newspaper article. Robert loved the article especially the comparison at the end. He will photocopy it to send to our 9 grandchildren. You are just a great writer for the most important concept on our Planet. Robert hopes that the clubs of happiness will spread throughout the USA and into other countries and at long last, Ministries of Happiness will be created in all governments. The United States could provide the model for happiness (your model) since our Constitution underlined the pursuit of happiness as the fundamental objective of governments.

Do you know what HOPE stands for?
H appiness
O ptimism
P eace
E -mail from great people like you!
Much Happiness to you, Barbara and Dr. Robert Muller.

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

Thanksgiving Basket Brigade
Thank you in advance for your help, as I know our basket brigade will come together and be a success. I am very excited about this year's Basket Brigade is on Saturday, November 22nd at 10:00 A.M. It will be at Innovative Measurements Solutions, Inc. (IMS, Inc.) 282 Quarry Road, Milford, CT 06460 203 874-2655.

I am asking you to be a part of the Basket Brigade Team! Since 1994, on the Weekend before Thanksgiving, volunteers have been putting together and delivering baskets with all the fixins' to those in need in the greater New Haven area. We work with three agencies to find the families needing assistance: CCCC (Coordinating Council for Children in Crisis), Yale family and children agency, and Bella Vista senior center.

A typical basket that we provide may include: turkey, stuffing, potatoes, cranberry juice, 2 vegetables, brownie mix, pie, juice, donated personal care items (shampoo, conditioner, lotion etc.), and a toy. We also include a book, "Notes From a Friend" by Anthony Robbins, with quote inside saying: "This comes from someone who cares about you. All that we ask is that you take care of yourself well enough to be able to do this for someone else someday."

At this point, our target is to feed 100-120 families, which means we need to raise $2,500 - $3,000. The more people we have helping to raise money, the easier it will be. If there is a surplus, (which in past years has been little to none) we will use it towards basket enhancements, next year's Basket Brigade, or try to feed more families. So let's try to do the best we can, last year we almost had to cut our family list the last minute. This has historically been one of the more challenging aspects of the Basket Brigade, but I believe that as a group we can change that.

Please join the 2003 Basket Brigade Team, for information, and directions contact:
Matt Albert at 203-521-2990 or 203-459-9733 and his e-mail is: malpert100@aol.com
John Sottery (at IMS) phone number 203-874-2655
Lionel Ketchian can be reached at 203-258-7777

Even if you cannot attend the day of the Basket Brigade you can still help. Just send a tax-deductible check to: CCCC (the Coordinating Council for Children in Crisis) 131 Dwight Street, New Haven, CT 06511 (indicate basket brigade in the "memo" section). CCCC is a non-profit organization that has been providing client names and assistance to the Basket Brigade. Upon completion of the Basket Brigade, CCCC will mail a thank you letter (an employer may want to hang this up), which with your canceled check will be your receipt.

Other than raising money there is a lot of other preparation that we need you for.
Following are other areas we need help in order to prepare for the big delivery day. Please e-mail Matt Alpert at malpert100@aol.com to help out.

1) 2-3 individuals to help map the addresses. (We will show you!)
2) One individual to create a spreadsheet with our volunteer info, and be willing to
notify all volunteers of the delivery day details: directions to IMS, date time etc.
3) Delivery day organizational responsibilities: transportation coordinator, atmosphere
planner: food, music, etc.

My family and friends that includes people from the Happiness Club have been involved in this and it is lots of fun. You will not believe how much you will get into the Holiday Mood and Spirit by taking part in this event. We can use your help. Imagine, that it is Thanksgiving Day, and you are five years old, and your Mom does not have enough money to buy a nice dinner. You can make a difference in that kid's life. Who knows how much that will mean to that kid when he or she grows up and remembers what YOU did for them! We all experience getting a little of this happiness on ourselves. What a wonderful day of sharing happiness.

Basket Brigade will be at IMS, Inc. in Milford, at 10:00 A.M.
IMS, Inc.
Innovative Measurements Solutions
282 Quarry Road
Milford, CT 06460
203 874-2655

Happ-E-Quote:) "The more I have lived, the more I have concluded that unhappy people are simply unintelligent people." - Dr. Robert Muller

Happ-E-Meetings:) Yes, we will still hold Happiness Club Meetings. Anybody have any suggestions about where to hold meetings next year starting in January, 2004? The last one will be December 11, 2003. We may have them at the Town Hall in Fairfield. What do you think? Let us know!

Happ-E-Quote:) Implicit in Dr. Robert Muller's "recipes for happiness"is a belief I share -- the belief that pessimism and optimism are significantly more than opposite moods. The fact is that we do not know enough to be pessimists. Throughout history, man's supposed limitations have given way before the power of the human imagination, the ability of the human intellect to conceive of and do what has never been done before. The vision of life as it ought to be acts as a powerful magnet in the advance of the human race. Pessimism operates in a narrowed field of vision that fails to take into account the possibilities at the outer edges of experience. - Norman Cousins

HAPPINESS CLUB MEETING:) The Happiness Club is having its next meeting on Thursday, November 13, from 7:00 - 8:45 p.m. at Fairfield Public Library, upstairs in the Memorial Room, 1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield. The topic is the book: THE POWER of NOW, By Eckhart Tolle. Aspects of the book will be explored and discussed by Lionel Ketchian. Don't miss this valuable meeting, and meet some wonderful people using happiness in their lives.

NEXT HAPPINESS CLUB MEETING:)
Topic:) THE POWER of NOW
Date:) November 13, 2003
Time:) 7:00 - 8:45 P.M.
Place:) Fairfield Public Library
In the:) Memorial Room
Address:) 1080 Old Post Road, Fairfield, CT 06824

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:) "Someday political leaders too will find again the simple word "happiness" as the ultimate goal of their efforts." - Dr. Robert Muller

BE HAPPY ZONE
Fairfield Citizen-News
October 22, 2003

DR. ROBERT MULLER & THE UNITED NATIONS
By Lionel Ketchian

I enjoyed the opportunity of a lifetime. I just interviewed a man that I consider one of the greatest pioneers for peace and happiness. This Friday, October 24, is United Nations Day. The UN is 58 years old. The person I spoke with is Dr. Robert Muller who was a former Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations. Dr. Muller's distinguished career at the United Nations has spanned nearly 40 years. During his tenure with the world body, he contributed significantly to the creation of a number of its specialized agencies. He is considered the "father of global education."

I spoke to Dr. Muller and his wonderful wife Barbara while they were staying in California this past week. They were getting ready to leave for a trip to Tokyo, Japan for the Goi Peace Award. Dr. Robert Muller was presented with the Goi Peace Award on October 19, and delivered a speech at the banquet. The Goi Peace Award is presented annually to honor individuals and organizations in various fields that have made outstanding contributions toward the realization of a peaceful and harmonious world for all life on earth.

I first came to know about Dr. Muller when I read his book, Most of All, They Taught Me Happiness, many years ago. I consider this book among the ten best books I have ever read. It was then that I knew that I was reading about a man that understood happiness better than anyone else in our time. I learned that at a young age he experienced the horrors of World War II, because the Nazis imprisoned him. This was the case even though he was born in Belgium and was a Catholic. At the end of the war, Dr. Muller decided to devote his life to peace. He equipped himself with a doctorate degree in law from the University of Strasbourg. In 1947, Dr. Muller won a contest initiated by the United Nations with an essay on world government. He was invited to join the UN as an intern in 1948.

Dr. Muller devoted the next 38 years of his life at the United Nations, until his retirement in 1986. He rose through the ranks at the UN to the position of Assistant Secretary-General. He worked directly with three secretaries-general, U Thant, Kurt Waldheim and Javier Perez de Cuellar, as director of the secretary general's office, as secretary of the Economic and Social Council and as deputy under-secretary-general for coordination and interagency affairs in the secretary-general's office. In this capacity he helped coordinate the work of the thirty-two UN specialized agencies and world programs. He delivered on average 180 speeches a year. In those speeches, he would often mention the miracle of how humans at long last were self-consciously organizing themselves to solve the planet's problems. He was also in charge of launching several world conferences. Appointed Assistant Secretary-General by Perez de Cuellar, he worked at the UN until 1986.

In 1986, Dr. Muller retired to Costa Rica, there he serves as a one-dollar-a-year Chancellor Emeritus of the United Nations University for Peace in Costa Rica, a university that he helped create. Working from his hillside writer's cabin just above the University, he rises at dawn, watches the sunrise and writes for two hours every morning in order to conclude his lifework. He is in great demand as an international speaker and concentrates his efforts on promoting greater human understanding and global awareness.

Dr. Muller is the author of fourteen books, which have been published in several languages. He received the UNESCO Peace Education Prize in 1989, the Albert Schweitzer International Prize for the Humanities in 1993 and the Eleanor Roosevelt Man of Vision Award in 1994. He was the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation World Citizen honoree for 2002. Since 1984, this Foundation has honored some of the great peace leaders of our time, including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, The XIVth Dalai Lama, Jacques Cousteau, and King Hussein of Jordan. In recognition of his work, Dr. Muller has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Robert Muller is the man behind Ted Turner's billion-dollar donation to the United Nations and thousands of other acts of conscience. Ted Turner said, "Robert Muller has had a very large positive influence on me. He has a wonderful global outlook and a loving, kind-hearted attitude of forgiveness and understanding and patience. I have great admiration and respect for him. He's one of the greatest men to come along in a long time."

Robert Muller is considered the "father of global education," and his World Core Curriculum is used in an increasing number of schools around the world and serves as the educational structure of the 43 Robert Muller Schools. The first Robert Muller School was started in Arlington, Texas, USA, in 1979, to implement Robert Muller's World Core Curriculum and make the results available to educators around the world. This school is now the International Coordinating Center for the Robert Muller Schools and other groups around the world implementing the World Core Curriculum. Dr. Muller said to me that the children learn "you are a miracle." They go home and tell their parents; "I learned that I am a miracle." He said, "One miracle does not hurt another miracle. That's why they do not fight with one another."

I asked Dr. Muller about his religious outlook and he said all religions must realize the spiritual answers to life and not get stuck on being right. Dr. Muller is 80 years old, and he possesses the youngest and happiest mind I have ever had the privilege to know. He loves nature, and he is chock-full of gratitude. His says, "Life is an incredible miracle. We really need to be conditioned to happiness. We must become joyful."

Dr. Muller wrote this poem, "Decide to be happy. Render others happy. Proclaim your joy. Love passionately your miraculous life. Do not listen to promises. Do not wait for a better world. Be grateful for every moment of life. Switch on and keep on the positive buttons in yourself; those marked optimism, serenity, confidence, positive thinking, love. Pray and thank God every day. Meditate - Smile - Laugh - Whistle - Sing - Dance. Look with fascination at everything. Fill your lungs and heart with liberty. Be yourself fully and immensely. Act like a king or queen unto Death. Feel God in you body, mind, heart, and soul. And be convinced of eternal life and resurrection."

What Gandhi was to nonviolence, Dr. Muller is to happiness and peace. Dr. Muller is a hero and role model for me and the world. He has taught us that happiness can make the world a better place to live. He said, "Decide To Be Happy." He is still reaping the benefits of that decision and so are we. His website is robertmuller.org.

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.

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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.