If you think of this world as a place intended simply for our happiness, you find it quite intolerable; think of it as a place of training and correction and it’s not so bad.

~ C.S. Lewis

This is one of the biggest battles in my mind. I want to be happy. I choose to be happy. But I chose to not pursue happiness.

My son being autistic does not make me happy. He makes me happy but his condition does not. I don’t derive happiness from the fact that he cannot tell me he loves me or what he did today at school.

Happiness is important to us. As a culture we are taught to search for happiness. The framers of the constitution even put it in the docment, “the pursuit of happiness” right after life and liberty. I understand life and liberty, it’s the pursuit of happiness that confounds me. I think they meant it as the freedom to choose your life calling because pursuing happiness does not seem to bring happiness.

The more it’s pursued the more elusive it becomes. Nothing is sadder than a grown man pursuing happiness at any cost. The reason so many kids were raised without a father is because the dads were out chasing things they think will make them happy.

(My daughter: happy at Christmas )

People are chasing something that does not be need to be chased. Happiness does not need to be chased, it needs to be chosen.

We don’t need to be miserable human beings, pursue the things you enjoy just not at everyone else’s expense.

To pursue our own happiness at the expense of our fellow humans is a recipe for human misery. That is why Atlas Shrugged (by Ayn Rand) drives me crazy. Pursuing your own desires recklessly is exactly what many big companies do.

Why did you dump the pollution? It’s cheaper and I want more money, it makes me happy.

Why did you crush labor rights? Cause me having more money makes me happy.

Money is not the root of all evil, the love of the money is the root of all evil. Everyone needs money but to pursue it to hells gates for your own personal happiness will not make you happy.

Choose happiness. Happiness is always the journey never the destination.