The Pursuit of Happiness

When you were a kid, what did you want to be? Where did you see your life? Married, kids, dogs, a house, a white picket fence, a career, were you filthy rich or comfortable? Maybe all of these things or maybe some, but I bet the one thing that you wanted was to “be happy”.

My life is not the one I wanted but it is my life. I have made choices that I regret but at the same time they have made me who I am today and I have many wonderful things in my life as a result of who I am and where I have ended up. But am I happy? If the answer to that is “no”, then at what cost do I pursue happiness?

If my house or my neighborhood is the source of my unhappiness, do I move? And what will the consequences of that move be – party neighbors, crummy school district, crime, uncontrollable weeds, or maybe it will be better – then will I be happy?

What if the source of unhappiness is my job? Change it, quit, but at what cost? Less pay, more benefits, less travel, more drive time? What if my next job doesn’t make me happy?

Oh Lord, what if my family is the source of my unhappiness, do I leave my family? At what price? Loneliness, a clean house, dinners for one?

Get my point? Our environments are part of the equation for our happiness, I do agree, but it is ultimately our outlook on our lives that determines how happy we are. If you are unhappy to the core of your soul, then it won’t make one bit of difference who you’re married to, where you work, where you live, whether or not your kids are well behaved, and so on. Your environment is the scapegoat for your unhappiness. Stop blaming others and your environment and take a good look at who you are because when it comes right down to it, you probably don’t like who you are.

The pursuit of one’s own personal happiness should not come at the cost of creating hurt and sadness among the people that love you, it just shouldn’t!