A post about happiness.

Is it easier to be happy or unhappy?

Should being happy take effort?

Is there beauty in the struggle to be happy?

Is there beauty in unhappiness?

Is the struggle to be happy any less valid than true happiness?

What is true happiness?

I think humans forget that they should try to be happy, sometimes. There is effort that can be expended to make yourself more likely to be happy. You can work out and be social and these things change how we see our lives.

Life will certainly throw you curveballs, and being unhappy is simply part of the ride.

You will be both, certainly. You will be jump-for-joy, punch-the-air happy.

You will grieve.

I think you can influence the swings. You can decide the context in which events happen. You can take a bad break and decide that it defines you less than the good roll of the dice. You can find out what or who makes you unhappy, and do your best to stop doing those things. I think if you can’t stop doing those things, you can try to find the beauty in them.

Remember, there’s also nothing wrong with being sad. Being sad is part of the deal. Sadness defines the happiness. Happiness defines the sadness.

I’d wager that there’s no force in the world that produces more unhappiness than comparison. I compare myself with others plenty. Others who make more money than me, or can lift more than more or are more attractive than me. It brings me unhappiness.

I think I’m wildly, beyond lucky.

Am I happy? Yeah, in this moment, I’d say so. But I just put a homemade pizza in the oven and I’m about to sit down and watch Doctor Who (David Tennant is good, but Matt Smith is the best) with Lauren. So I’d say that’s influencing things.