101 Ways to Move Forward After a Midlife Divorce

Tip # 24. Keep a "Happy Journal." Start your day with it. No sad musings about your situation or your wasband or anything negative. This is a happy journal! At the grocery store or drug store or a fancy stationery store, buy a notebook or a journal and dedicate it to positive, uplifting, empowering (happy) entries. I don’t care if all you do is write a list of simple things that make you happy. Here are some ideas: fresh plump strawberries; a clean refrigerator; a pot of bright flowers, an e-mail from a long-lost friend, an inspiring picture from a magazine (paste it in your journal), a funny picture of your grandchildren, learning how to change the filter in your furnace, a good book, a bubblebath. Make your “Happy Journal” personal. Put specific things on your list that make you smile. Copy a happy quote you come across. During your midlife divorce, (sometimes an almost unbearably sad time of your life), spend some time each day focused on the positive things still available to you. The little things that bring you joy. The big things you’re thankful for. The everyday things that make you smile. You’ll be amazed at how fast your journal fills up!