Tapping into Joy . . .

"It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps, with perfect sweetness, the independance of solitude."
~Ralph Waldo Emmerson

Did you know that you already possess all the inner wisdom, strength and creativity you need to make your dreams come true? Trust me when I tell you, it's completely true. It's just hard for us to tap into this wonderful power. We keep it buried beneath all the mundane things that run our everyday lives. Things like household chores, work, bills, laundry . . . all the day to day things that comprise our lives that we can't truly get away from. When problems crop up . . . and they always do . . . we are so distracted by the every day . . that we forget to look inside ourselves and tap our own personal power and inner resources to deal with them. Instead, we look outside ourselves and rely on other's to get us out of a sticky patch, or indeed to give us joy. The beautiful truth is that we already have all that we need inside us, all that we need to form a plan for change, all that we need to make us happy.



I have often heard it said that "true happiness" lies within. I believe this to be true with every fibre of my being. All around me I see people struggling to find happiness and joy, but they are going about it the wrong way. They buy a new car, or some new clothes . . . new furniture, jewelry, new shoes . . . and, whilst that may help to make them feel happy for a short time, it isn't long before their soul starts yearning for something else to fill that hole, that vacuum in their lives that re-appears very quickly after the newness of what they've bought themselves wears off. The truth is there isn't anything that we can buy that will bring about the change needed to make us truly happy and content . . . to fill that gaping hole in our souls.



One of the major things we can do to help bring about an inner change . . . a change that can help us to weave a tapestry of inner contentment and peace, well being and joy . . . is gratitude. Being thankful for all those things we already possess, and by that I don't mean the things of the world, or the things that the world tells us we need to make us happy. by that I mean a mental and spiritual inventory of all that we have and possess inside ourselves and in our lives that already bring us joy. Our talents, our blessings, our health, our faith, our families, our friends . . . These things are precious and once we begin to take stock of them it's easy to see that we are already quite wealthy in ways that money cannot possibly buy.

Being grateful is an important step towards simplifying your life and finding all the joys and pleasures that life has to offer us. We need to clear out and pare down in order to truly realize the essentials of what we need to be happy and live abundant lives. With simplicity comes order, both inside and out. With simplicity comes harmony, the essence of inner peace. When we are able to find peace within ourselves, we can truly begin to appreciate all the beauty and the real joy that surrounds us every day. Pure, unadulterated and crystal clear. Abundant. Joy.



Give thanks today for all that you have in the way of talents and blessings, for the beauty that surrounds you, for loved ones that mean so much to you, for simple things like shelter, health and home, for work and for play. Give thanks in all things, and every moment that you live will begin to fill with joy . . . joy that is already yours and always has been. I do . . . every minute of every day, and my cup truly runneth over.

"Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." ~2 Nephi 2:25

I was really craving pasta last night and as you know it's not really one of Todd's favourite things to eat. So, I pleased the both of us and made him a simple cottage pie and made myself some Italian style bacon and eggs.



*Spaghetti Carbonara*
Serves 2, but can easily be doubled
Printable Recipe

Leave it to the Italians to come up with a more delicious and inventive way of having their bacon and eggs. Using simple ingredients, it's very easy to cook,
and very quick. This is a real favourite of mine. The trick it to keep the eggs from scrambling and allowing the heat from the pasta to cook them into a delicious silky sauce.

2 ounces pancetta, finely chopped
1 ounce freshly grated Parmesan Reggiano Cheese
1 ounces freshly grated Pecorino Cheese
2 medium eggs
6 ounces of good quality dried spaghetti (I like to use one made with eggs)
1 fat clove of garlic, peeled and bruised with a knife
1 ounce butter



Bring a large saucepan of salted water to the boil. Beat the eggs well and then beat in 3/4 of the grated cheese. Set aside.

Drop the spaghetti into the boiling water and cook at a constant simmer for about 10 minutes until just done, or al dente.

While the pasta is cooking heat the butter in a large skillet until it begins to foam. Drop in the clove of garlic and the pancetta.
Cook and stir over medium heat until the pancetta is golden and crisp, about five minutes. Scoop out the garlic clove and discard.
Keep the pancetta warm over low heat until the pasta is done. Once the pasta is done, scoop it out of the salted water with a pasta fork or with tongs
and drop it into the skillet with the pancetta. Don't worry about getting any of the cooking water into the pan, this will help to make the sauce.
(Don't throw the cooking water away just yet.) Remove the skillet from the heat.

Tip in the eggs and cheese quickly and, using the tongs, lift up the spaghetti so that it mixes easily with the egg mixture and everything is
coated with a silky sauce. (You do not want the eggs to scramble) Add a few tablespoons of pasta water if needed to keep it moist but not wet.
Season with some salt and freshly ground black pepper and serve immediately with a little sprinkling of the remaining cheese.