Anyone out there read <em><a title="The Art of Happiness AMAZON" href="http://www.amazon.com/Art-Happiness-Troubled-World/dp/0767920643/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1296140729&amp;sr=1-2" target="_blank">The Art of Happiness: A Handbook for Living</a></em> by The Dalai Lama?  I read some parts of it today and felt something in me jump (not just the baby).  The book is not written <em>by</em> The Dalai Lama XIV, rather it is based on the teachings that he has passed on.  It's the first book in what will eventually be a five book series (book 3 was just released).  He says that everyone is seeking something better and that the motion of our lives is towards happiness.  What would the world be like if everyone would follow his life instructions?  I certainly want to feel that world and am willing to start trying right now.  Sharing time has commenced.
<p style="text-align:center;"><strong><em>
The Dalai Lama's Instructions for Life:</em></strong></p>
<p style="text-align:center;">Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.
When you lose, don't lose the lesson.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">Follow the three R's:  <strong>R</strong>espect for self.  <strong>R</strong>espect for others.  <strong>R</strong>esponsibility for all your actions.
Remember that not getting what you want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.
Don't let a little dispute injure a great relationship.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">Spend some time alone everyday.
Open your arms to change, but don't let go of your values.
Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">Live a good, honorable life. Then when you get older and think back, you'll be able to enjoy it a second time.
A loving atmosphere in your home is the foundation for your life.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don't bring up the past.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.
Be gentle with the earth.
Once a year, go someplace you've never been before.</p>
<p style="text-align:center;">Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.
Judge your success by what you had to give up in order to get it.
Approach love and cooking with reckless abandon.</p>
<strong>Anyone else feel their heart skip a beat after reading all that??</strong> Some of those "instructions" feel like advice I have already received from my father, who is a very wise man.  Some of it feels like something out of Baz Luhrmann's <a title="Bahz Luhrmann : Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI" target="_blank">"Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)"</a>.  Some of it feels like pieces plucked from The Good Book.  Either way, I'm taking it to heart (and printing it out for our refrigerator).  You can check out more at the <a title="The Art of Happiness OFFICIAL" href="http://www.theartofhappiness.com/" target="_blank">official site for the book series</a> too.

Light &amp; love to everyone on this Thursday,
Jennifer