Happiness

I heard once that "You don't need a reason to be happy".

That's absolute nonsense, if you ask me.

Of course you need a reason to be happy! This world is a mess; children are hungry around the world, including in America; and, as I write, the Steelers are losing. It seems to me that you need a really, really good reason to be happy.

But that doesn't mean you need a reason to be content.

Being content means being satisfied with what you have. Being content is, in my opinion, superior to happiness. If you're happy, you need to keep adding more and more metaphorical fuel to your happiness fire to stay happy. If you're content, you already have all you need.

In my experience, no one is always content. But the difference between those who are sometimes content and those who are never content is wide and very noticeable. The person who is sometimes content lives within their means and doesn't do absurd things to satiate their desires, as opposed to the person who is never content.

Being content isn't a neutral position. It doesn't just happen naturally; you have to work at it. Admittedly, it sounds counter-intuitive to work for contentment, but in my experience, and probably in yours too, it doesn't happen on its own.

And contentment doesn't mean complacency. Contentment means being satisfied with what you have; complacency means being unwilling to work for anything else. Being content doesn't mean you stop working, but instead means you are willing to accept either success or defeat from the work. (I also have an issue with the phrase "failure is not an option". Of course it's an option! If you're not willing to accept failure, you're going to miss out on anything you might have learned when you do fail)

Seek contentment. It's a lot more secure than happiness. Trust me on this one; the Steelers are still losing.

Three random thoughts:
1. The first week of classes is over! Hooray! Hooray! Now to enter into my regular semester schedule, instead of my bizarre first-week schedule.
2. HUGE thanks to everyone who's been voting over at Choose Your Own Blogventure! Let's keep it rolling, everyone!
3. I can now add Paul & Storm to my list of cool people who have responded to my internet comments in some way. Also on the list: Molly Lewis, Josh Harris and the good folks at ThinkGeek.