Monday, April 27, 2015

The Pursuit of Happiness


The pursuit of happiness. It's in our constitution. Our founding fathers thought that we should all have the right to pursue happiness. By now, many of us take that pursuit for granted. So much so, that perhaps we have even misinterpreted "the right to pursue happiness" and replaced it with "I have a right to be happy, so you need to make me happy, because it's my right."

The pursuit is our right. Whether we get there or not is up to us and no one else. "The road to happiness" Is a metaphor that works here. If I want to get somewhere, it's a journey. How long, how tough itveasy that journey is, is dependent on my starting point. As I pursue happiness on a potentially long and winding road, I need to have an idea of what happiness is/looks like to me, and where I am in relationship to that goal/destination. The further I am from my goal, the longer the pursuit. The rockier, hillier, the road, the more challenging the pursuit. If I am starting from a place a deep depression, I probably won't find happiness in one day.  If I've spent years self-medicating, I probably won't find happiness in a day. If I've spent years blaming others for my misery and plight, I probably won't find happiness in one day. I say "in one day," but I mean "one day, a week, maybe a year, in some cases, years." But hey, ya gotta go somewhere, so you might as well pursue the Happiness thing!

We know that it takes willpower, desire, and consistency to train for a marathon, and for some, to even be able to walk or run around the block. We know we can't get up off the couch that we've been glued to for 10 years and go running. We don't blame someone else for the fact that we are out of shape. So we get to work. Whether we can do it ourselves or we get a trainer, we still have to do it. We have to make the choices that move us in the direction to our goal, in spite of feeling  sore, unseen, entitled, or discouraged. 

The pursuit or road to happiness is much the same. Just because you are on the road to happiness, doesn't mean you will be happy today. The road to happiness may be the most painful, challenging thing you've ever done. But I can promise you this- it will be worth it. So whether you train yourself or work with a trainer, love yourself for saying "yes!" to this pursuit, and keep going! And if you are already "there," YAY! That's right- put on your cheerleading outfit! It'll look good on ya!