What is it to be happy?
It seemed much easier in our childhood, where a free treat will induce euphoria and a hug from a parent equates to pure bliss. Where a good grade meant a wonderful holiday ahead, presents from parents and self worth. Where love seemed much easier.
However, in recent years, this concept drifted from its shore. Now, with choppy waves and unprecedented depths, happiness - as an emotion grew incoherently complex. Now, it was easy to feel this temporal emotion called glee, called excitement, called joy; but happiness as a basal emotion, as a state of mind -
seems even more out of reach, with increased expectations of ourselves, of life, of how to live life;
It would be apt to say that nowadays, we are easily elated, easily delighted, easily cheerful - for the sake of pleasantries, but few would say that we are happy.
In this age of social media, happiness has become transient - it has become a flurry of photos, of staged, smiling faces, of predetermined poses and scenery: it has become a calculation.
And as we look through hundreds of Instagram photos, of Facebook photos - we see, and we get used to all these many photos screaming "Look at me! I am happy and you all know it!"
And it gets harder. We ask ourselves, are we happy? Do we have enough exciting activities, just like our Instagram follow? Do we have enough achievements to be proud of? Do we have enough happiness to parade to the world through our tiny computer screens?
But do we have to?
As long as we have tried, we would be happy. As long as you believe in yourself - and that's emerging a distant option - as we need others to believe in our reality, for us to believe in ourselves.
For we need approval, from co-workers at work telling us how good a job we've done, to an A in our transcript, to a letter proving our scholarship receipts:
happiness is no longer within our control.
And we have to change. For every moment is the only moment we will ever have.
For every waking hour, that is spent wallowing in despair, in sadness, in boredom -
Can be spent with happiness. With loved ones. With the work that you do - and enjoy.
With an innocent mind - that believes in happiness from within.
A mind that believes in free love, a love not calculated, not measured, and not owed.
A happy mind, because we are happy.
So why complain of unhappy things? Why fear of not doing well in school, at work, with relationships and friends? Why be afraid and unhappy when all you have to do is to try? This is a technological age, where connections are so much faster, yet people are so much further apart. Where meetings are no longer face-to-face communications but email exchanges.
Feelings are so much more described than felt. And we have to change. Why not make a change today? Why not as you go to work, think of ways to make happiness real? Instead of sending an email - why not find him or her to initiate the discussion?
Walking never hurts when it leads to good returns. And human interaction - real ones - are the best returns you can ever get, especially in today's age where we are so close;
yet so distant.
And then we can be happy.
It seemed much easier in our childhood, where a free treat will induce euphoria and a hug from a parent equates to pure bliss. Where a good grade meant a wonderful holiday ahead, presents from parents and self worth. Where love seemed much easier.
However, in recent years, this concept drifted from its shore. Now, with choppy waves and unprecedented depths, happiness - as an emotion grew incoherently complex. Now, it was easy to feel this temporal emotion called glee, called excitement, called joy; but happiness as a basal emotion, as a state of mind -
seems even more out of reach, with increased expectations of ourselves, of life, of how to live life;
It would be apt to say that nowadays, we are easily elated, easily delighted, easily cheerful - for the sake of pleasantries, but few would say that we are happy.
In this age of social media, happiness has become transient - it has become a flurry of photos, of staged, smiling faces, of predetermined poses and scenery: it has become a calculation.
And as we look through hundreds of Instagram photos, of Facebook photos - we see, and we get used to all these many photos screaming "Look at me! I am happy and you all know it!"
And it gets harder. We ask ourselves, are we happy? Do we have enough exciting activities, just like our Instagram follow? Do we have enough achievements to be proud of? Do we have enough happiness to parade to the world through our tiny computer screens?
But do we have to?
As long as we have tried, we would be happy. As long as you believe in yourself - and that's emerging a distant option - as we need others to believe in our reality, for us to believe in ourselves.
For we need approval, from co-workers at work telling us how good a job we've done, to an A in our transcript, to a letter proving our scholarship receipts:
happiness is no longer within our control.
And we have to change. For every moment is the only moment we will ever have.
For every waking hour, that is spent wallowing in despair, in sadness, in boredom -
Can be spent with happiness. With loved ones. With the work that you do - and enjoy.
With an innocent mind - that believes in happiness from within.
A mind that believes in free love, a love not calculated, not measured, and not owed.
A happy mind, because we are happy.
So why complain of unhappy things? Why fear of not doing well in school, at work, with relationships and friends? Why be afraid and unhappy when all you have to do is to try? This is a technological age, where connections are so much faster, yet people are so much further apart. Where meetings are no longer face-to-face communications but email exchanges.
Feelings are so much more described than felt. And we have to change. Why not make a change today? Why not as you go to work, think of ways to make happiness real? Instead of sending an email - why not find him or her to initiate the discussion?
Walking never hurts when it leads to good returns. And human interaction - real ones - are the best returns you can ever get, especially in today's age where we are so close;
yet so distant.
And then we can be happy.
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