Baring it all...

...and feeling happy about it!

Last week saw a campaign for battling cancer which involved posting make-up free selfies on FaceBook and Twitter.

Interesting.

Well, in my book of interesting things it was but perhaps it was just rather random to you...

A once in a lifetime moment captured on camera

Anyway, the part that was interesting to me was the uncomfortable feeling of letting go. Letting go of the image I have held onto for many years - and it will still be there even after more than just one nomakeupselfie, that's for certain.

It was for a good cause and the campaign stirred up a lot in the media and was altogether successful. I am in awe of everyone who really bared it all, so to speak.

A great reminder that in order to be our authentic self we sometimes need to show some of what we hide... And it made med think of my teacher, mentor and good friend, Dr. Madan Kataria, who some odd years ago decided to shave his head and step out of the image-zone in order to be who he is.

The authentic, unconditional image of compassion, love and laughter!

Vanity rules a many a mind in our materialistic society and it was a great exercise in letting go of the familiar - even if just for a moment or two.

Happiness in a flowerpot

Last week also saw the International Day of Happiness taking place. It tied very well in with the idea of being the self and as I was pondering on the quote from Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon about how 'happiness may have different meaning to different people but we can all agree that it means working to end conflict, poverty and other unfortunate conditions in which many of our fellow human beings live' it surfaced in my thoughts; the truth in the words stating that as long as we are at war with the self in our own stressful ways, that is how long we will have war outside the self and the stiving for peace and happiness is all it is, striving.

Happiness is a choice in the here and now and tapping into the inate joy everyone is born with can deeply and profoundly aid the process of being in a state of happy-happy-happy.

However, I do empathise with Ki-Moon's statement although in my opinion it is in the realm of the measures of the happiness index and based on the social, economic and environmental well-being which cannot be separated, as it goes, and this in itself makes the happiness a chase outside ourselves.

Definining wealth by measuring material prosperity and GNP etc are measures of the past and Bhutan have long known this - and that's what UN and everyone else have realised, and that's what The International Day of Happiness is about!

Woopeedoo!
Going back to my roots!