The most utterly lost of all days is the day on which you have not laughed.
I'm always curious at the end of a Chinese meal to unveil the little saying in the fortune cookie. This saying I will carry with me as a reminder that laughing, joy, and humor is key to happiness and of being mindful.
Recently, I've been reading about the life and philosophy of a great teacher, poet, writer, Zen Master and Vietnamese Buddist monk. Thich Nhat Hanh or Tie as his students call him. He was born in Central Vietman in 1926, and has lived in southwest France where he was exiled for many years. In his book Answers from the Heart Tie reveals how we can live a life of peace and happiness by being mindful of what our environment is revealing to us and how we can respond to the demands of everyday life in a serene and meaningful way. He says, "Mindfulness must be engaged. Once there is seeing, there must be acting. Otherwise, what's the use of seeing?" In other words peacefulness and happiness can be obtained when we can fully see that our connection here and now is not of the past or in the future. The things we must see are the moments we are living now.
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