“For after all, the best thing one can do when it is raining is let it rain.”

~ Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

When a friend recently asked me if there is anything I would change about my life, I instinctively said, “Absolutely not! I am more content than I’ve ever been, and happier than I ever thought would be possible.”

His response was, “Surely you would like to have more money, a bigger house or something, no?” And my answer to that was…“No.” I mean, I am already happy; who knows what more money would do to my life?!

It’s like this:

If life is a cake recipe that we are trying to perfect, then I’ve got my recipe down just right for the time being (with the ideal amount of flour, sugar, baking soda, etc.). More sugar, for example, would not necessarily make a better cake. In fact, it might ruin it!

So if you’re not happy with your life, figure out which ingredients make it bitter and take them out. Don’t believe commercials that tell you to spread more frosting on the top, because then you would simply wind up with a bitter cake that has frosting on it.

People say things like, “If I just go on vacation to Hawaii, then my life will be better!” The problem is that when you return home from the Islands (or, in other words, when you’re done licking the frosting) your bitter cake will still be there waiting for you.

But (and this is the really good part) if you get the ingredients just right, then your life is awesome with or without frosting. Anything fun you do on top of that is, well, icing on the cake!

We get to try a new recipe every morning (especially if we live our lives to the fullest). So even if your cake ends up bitter one day, that’s okay—make it differently tomorrow.

Just never blame other people if your cake doesn’t turn out; we each bake our own.

Here’s a secret: while everyone’s recipe is a little different, the main ingredients for a successful batter are love, gratitude, kindness and patience. And the single most common ingredient that makes people’s cake bitter is fear, so don’t use it!

Happy baking, everybody!

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Assistant Ed: Dana Gornall/Ed: Bryonie Wise

Photo credit Pixoto