Spending our lives searching for a magic door
HE LOOKED EVERYWHERE AND TURNED UP EMPTY HANDED. FRUSTRATED, THE CUB ASKED HIS MOTHER: ‘WHERE CAN I FIND HAPPINESS?’
The shoe fits Cinderella. The frog turns into a prince. A kiss awakens Sleeping Beauty. We believe the fairytales because for the hope they give us. And who doesn’t want to live happily ever after? Live the dream, as they say.
At the heart of each of these fantasies is the idea that someday, even our long struggle might have a fairytale ending. The fairytales in preschool and the proverbs in higher classes teach us that life’s purpose is to be happy. It is with this belief that we begin the pursuit of happiness, set goals, plan, and strategise. That’s where the problem begins. Trying to make sure we are happy tomorrow, we forget to be happy today.
I’ve been trying to know what happiness means. I found that people get lost because they think of happiness as a destination. We live to someday be happy — when we get that degree or that job or that one person who’ll fix everything. I have no halo around my head and I’m not trying to be profound, but believe me when I say that happiness is a fleeting mood, like feeling hungry, tired, or sleepy. It’s fine to be miserable now and then but it’s not okay to make a habit of it in the hope of a better tomorrow.
Learn to not be bitter over life’s little disappointments. Recognise that everyday will not be sunny. Grab happiness whenever you can, wherever you can. Live in today and be happy right now, and you’ll find happiness more often. It is not how much we have, but how much we enjoy, that makes happiness. The greater part of our misery or unhappiness is determined not by our circumstance but by our disposition. “If you want to be happy, be,” said Leo Tolstoy. “Be happy for this moment,” mused Omar Khayyam. “This moment is your life.”
I remember the tale of a lion cub that went on a hunt for happiness. He looked everywhere and turned up empty handed. Frustrated, the cub asked his mother: “Where can I find happiness?” “On your tail,” said the mother. So the little lion spent the entire day chasing his tail. Seeing this, the mother smiled and said: “You don’t have to chase happiness. Just keeping moving on and happiness will follow.”