May All Beings Be Happy

Buddhism teaches the transience of all things, a certain calm detachment from others and from oneself. We are taught not to take ourselves too seriously, and we are taught to believe that there is little ultimate truth in grief and misery. The real wisdom is joy. The real wisdom is happiness. The true wisdom is that of the Buddha, who is always shown at peace with all things.
p.104 A Journey in Ladakh by Andrew Harvey

Once the Buddha was asked to explain real happiness. He enumerated various wholesome actions which are productive of happiness, which are real blessings. All these blessings fall into two categories: performing actions that contribute to the welfare of others by fulfilling responsibilities to family and society, and performing actions that cleanse the mind (Vipassana Meditation). William Hart's Vipassana Meditation

drmike replies:
That's very nice reminder Ron. I am happy when I can make others happy, and to be of service. It gets hard when sometimes you feel like you are not doing enough for yourself, however so there is a balance to be struck. Like I love to have my son learn golf. But I get frustrated seeing him hit it 30 yards, when I want to get my driver to stretch out to 300. But the art of it is to let him just do his thing. Give him a Gatorade so he can see you do yours, and by the end of it all are happy. Vipassana, or any other meditation that works to "cleanse" the mind is growing to be ever more essential for me to stay away from unrealistic expectations of both others and myself. It is helping to achieve that patience in myself, that I need to be more effective with the rest of the world.