25 Oct suzanna longnecker carlson.

tampa, florida. | mother. wife. daughter. sister. aunt. friend. pharmaceuticals area business manager.

What is your best advice on how to live a graceful life?

I do my best to be impeccable with my word, love others abundantly, practice an attitude of gratitude, forgive and let go of the past … and then BAM! (It’s not always that easy, is it?) I come home from work only to learn my four-year-old daughter asked my sweet husband where babies come from … and HE TOLD HER! (Was that our game plan?) Or I am sitting on an airplane reading “The Happiness Project,” and I cannot help but to overhear a flight attendant yelling at an innocent elderly woman because she was mistakenly sitting in the exit row. Really?

Yes, these are the moments where a switch is flipped from a ‘Spiritual Loving Channel’ to an ‘Oh No She Didn’t Channel.’ When I stumble over these occasional bumps in the road, I pick myself up and strive to do better the next time. In the end, I have learned that for me living a graceful life is a journey not a destination. In order to get closer to grace, we need to write it on our heart and go confidently in that direction every day.

What gets you through a rough day?

Evidence supports that Laughter is a powerful antidote to stress, pain, and conflict. When I have a rough day, I find that humor puts life back into perspective. Being a working mom, I try to find levity where I can. When I am driving to work, I tune into Pandora’s Comedy Channel. I am often surprised that the police don’t pull me over when they see a grown woman laughing her you know what off for no apparent reason. (I probably do look like a crazy person—no judgment.)

At home, my daughters Lily and Grace love to tell nonsensical knock-knock jokes at dinner hoping to get a reaction out of us. Rather than shushing them, I take time to enjoy their giggles. For the really bad days, I keep a stash of DVR’ed Jimmy Fallon monologues or jump on Netflix and find a comedy to lift my spirits. As William James so eloquently said, “We don’t laugh because we’re happy—we’re happy because we laugh.”