Pleasant Gloom

“In a world of disorder and disaster and fraud, sometimes only beauty can be trusted.”
- Elizabeth Gilbert in Eat, Pray, Love

I think I’ve been in love with rain ever since my childhood friend used to tell me that fairies come out when it rains.

Since then I’ve developed a more profound appreciation for precipitation, though I guess I can’t really prove that little winged creatures don’t actually come out in the rain. My infatuation with rain exists not because it gives me an excuse to indulge in a sappy chick flick while feasting on some highly caloric treat (although this is a handsome bonus), but because of its beauty.

Lately I’ve struggled to develop a coping mechanism for all of the atrocities I've read about. How can I live peacefully, for example, knowing that so many animals are tortured on factory farms each day after reading the book Eating Animals? And even worse, how can I continue to live a privileged life while human suffering exists in every dark corner of the world? I can’t actually see the insidious oil spill, but how can I ignore all the damage and all the pain it’s causing?

One of the aspects that I really enjoy about Christianity is the idea that because Jesus died for us and chose to take all of mankind’s suffering upon Himself, He can serve as a sort of ashtray into which we can shake all of the ashes of the burnt-out problems that we cannot possibly cope with concerning life on Earth. Though I still struggle with several aspects of Christianity, I believe there must be a God who can serve as a depository for the corruption of humankind and who can heal it with His grace. Timothy Keller writes, “Though Christianity does not provide the reason for each experience of pain, it provides deep resources for actually facing suffering with hope and courage rather than bitterness and despair.”

So I asked God if He could please harness all of the hurt that I have been feeling for the victims of suffering in the world and try to cook up some kind of eternal euphoric treat for them out of all their struggles for when they reach the gates of heaven.

Then the falling rain showed me its beauty.

When the Earth is hot or just fed up with all of the stupid humidity, it simply decides to cool off with a shower. Precipitation is cyclical, in case you didn’t know. Plant roots soak up groundwater and transpire into the air while water evaporates from bodies of water to create condensation, which leads to the precipitation that moves us to our couches and cancels our picnic plans. It’s sorta crazy how all that works out in perfect succession every time (Hmmm - maybe there’s Somebody behind all that).

But more than all that, rain itself is beautiful. It’s too easy to be happy on a sunny day. Rain presents a challenge to humanity: Will you allow nature’s gloom to impede upon your mood, or will you dance in the rain?

At work the other day, I discovered that other people share my passion for “dreary” weather, so I asked them why. One of the cooks said, “A sun is just a plain piece of paper, you know. Rain’s got attitude – it’s got personality.” Another said, “I like my Vitamin D in small dosages. A good rain is refreshing.” He said he embraces the gloom that everybody else hates, and I do too.

I also like the rain because it gives us more freedom. Sometimes our freedom must be limited in order to experience new freedom. That may seem illogical, but when you think of a fish whose freedom is limited to water (on land a fish would suffocate and basically “drown” the way we would in water), it might make more sense. The fish is able to experience new freedom in its limited environment. Another example of this is when I start to run out of money at school and my meal selection is limited to bread, yogurt, and frozen veggies. I start to get really creative.

Rain creates freedom by limiting it. We seek shelter and get our bills done on a rainy day, or we play a boardgame with a family member (I wish boardgames were still cool). We invite a soggy companion to share the tiny space underneath our umbrellas and endure the falling fury of the sky in tender closeness. We finish a puzzle or we invite our friends over for a warm dinner that we may not have cooked if it were too nice out. And what about mudslides or extreme mud-fighting? Awesome.

So in the midst of all the troubles in the world, beauty is sometimes the only thing that makes sense.

And rain is beautiful.

Glee Formula

“Be your best friend yea I’ll love you forever, up in the clouds we’ll be higher than ever. Eh-eh, eh-eh, so happy I could die.”
-Lady Gaga

Sometimes I feel so happy that I don’t know how I’ve ever felt sad or could ever feel upset again. That state of mind is called euphoria – one that many drug addicts seek to discover through artificial means. Then, naturally, there are times when I feel so depressed that all I want to do is lie motionless and watch re-runs of Friends for hours while feeding myself cake.

But whereas these feelings of hopelessness used to drag on for several days at a time, they exist now only in fleeting moments. My frowny moments are only fleeting because I’ve learned how to make every day of my life euphoric.

Invigorating the ordinary has become simple for me because I’ve finally mastered a recipe that I have been seeking to refine for 20 years. I’ve been very fortunate that the ingredients for happiness have been readily accessible to me, because for many these ingredients are quite scarce (or might be just a lot harder to find). People ask why I’m so chipper all the time, and they wonder what it would be like to visit ‘Meghan La-La Land,’ which apparently is a happy paradise that exists only in my mind. While I understand that the ingredients of any individual’s happiness will be drastically different from another’s, I thought I’d share the secret behind my annoying smiley face in case maybe one of my ingredients could add a nice flavor to your own mixture of contentment.

Like any other edible creation, happiness tastes different to everyone. And like any other recipe, all the ingredients of this creation must be evenly distributed – if just one ingredient falls out of balance the whole product is screwed. That’s why I liked the idea of presenting my glee formula as a recipe.



Personal Recipe for Euphoria:

Mix the following ingredients into a 24-hour day, 7 days a week in moderation

1. Love
2. Gratitude
3. Others-regarding ethic
4. Laughter
5. Zen habits
6. Knowledge expansion
7. Healthy thoughts
8. Exercise
9. A vegetable-based diet
10. Positive Communication
11. Organized living space
12. Suffering
13. Sleep

Heat under sunlight, let cool under moonlight.
Always tastes delicious.



A brief explanation of each ingredient:

1. I will love myself, others, and God. Every single time I look in a
mirror, I will tell myself one thing I love about myself and one thing I am thankful for. Loving others makes the world a better place – but to love others I must first love myself and God. Loving God strengthens the
connection between human life and eternal bliss, which is the only
connection that we truly need.

2. I will thank everyone and be thankful for everything. Every morning
when I wake up I will feel intense gratitude for the pleasures in my
life. As I step out of my bed I will say “thank” as I put one foot
down, and “you” as I put my other foot down.

3. I will always help people and orbit around others instead of
asking others to orbit around me.

4. I will laugh, because laughter – even if forced – always improves a
person’s mood.

5. I will live in each moment as it comes. I will immerse my entire self
in the now.

6. I will read until my eyes bleed.

7. I will only harbor healthy thoughts. There is never value in a
negative thought.

8.I will make time for my body to release endorphins and get the attention
that it needs.

9. I will eat to fuel, and eat for pleasure only in moderation. I will
cut out useless bulk including meats and most dairy.

10. I will play the annoying child game with everyone I know (ask fifty
questions about every person, because everyone has a story).

11. I will maintain control of my environment and not let a messy
environment alter my stress levels.

12. I will work hard and allow sadness to penetrate me fully when I need
to experience it so that I can detach from these feelings once I recover.

13. I will give my mind and body as much sleep as it needs to incorporate all of these ingredients in my day.



What is your own personal recipe for euphoria? It was fun creating this one. Make your own list and spice up each day with some flavorful cheer.

Everything will be delicious.