Over the holidays, I found myself watching the behavior of others. I can't just say "Over The Holidays" b/c I've observed this for a while. ~ I'm a big "People Watcher" But this time , it was diffirent. I found myself asking the question " What Are These People Looking For".... & thought, they all just seem to be going in circles w/ their lives. I think we probably all have a tendency to do this at some stage,~ I know that I have, in my life. It seemed extreme in some of these cases. It would make it so much easier if I could say the things that I saw, but I wont , for the simple dignity of others. But I can give examples... One that's really big to me...& I'll be honest, I see it in my sister, CONSTANTLY ! (She wouldn't mind me saying, we laugh about it, together, all the time.) ~ She always feeling the need to have something bigger & better. She's never satisfied w/ her house, her cars, her hair, her clothes, her body....yada yada. (And She's Sooo Gorgeous !!!!) She goes to extremes, always wanting more, More, MORE. $1,500 extensions, having extreme things done to her body, several $40,000 cars in a couple of years, always wanting something pricier, flashier...always eying "The Nicer Neighborhood".(a mth. after she buys a beautiful, new home) If you know my sister, then you know what I mean. I tell her that she needs a hobby. lol ~ But there are so many people like this. Maybe it's an "American Thing"...? Not that everyone in America is like this. It annoys me. I notice people trying to find their own happiness through others....wrong, wrong, wrong. It'll never happen. I'll admit to this one. I've been there. As in, thinking that you need someone in your life, in order to be happy. It's all an elusion. It doesn't make you happy it just makes you realize (Hopefully) that you need to search inside of yourself & become fufilled through your own achievements & passions lived out. Money: Money will make you happy. HA ! I recently started a job that I hated. All of my coworkers kept saying " Oooh, Jeanee', But The $$$ Is Sooo Good" . Seriously !!?? Who cares when you're miserable !? I didn't even feel like myself anymore. In just a short time, I felt like nearly every aspect of my life was suffering. So, I went back to my old job Maybe I don't make what I could have made there, but I'm happy. I'm surrounded by the people I love & the atmosphere that I want to be in & I'm Happy ! =D It's really changed my life around. I feel centered again. I see others being down right destructive w/ their lives... by using substances over & over. Practically giving up everything, to hold onto this. This one really frustrates me. When you care about someone & you see this in them, it's painful to watch. It's actually the one that made me ask that question ~ What are they searching for ? None of this is to say that I don't appreciate nice things, or working hard...I can & I do. But, open your eyes...What are you searching for in all of this madness...??? Moderation in all things, is truly your friend. I Recently Started To Think A Lot About Happiness & What It Means To ME. It's Something That I Think We Can All Say We Long For ~ True Happiness & Contentment Within Our Lives. I Came To The Realization, FOR MYSELF, That Happiness Is A Choice, A Decision That We All Have. We Can Either Choose To Open Ourselves Up To It Or Decide To Reject The State Of Love, Peace, and Joy That Lives Within All Of Us. Once you decide to be happy, the road to getting there will be a lot smoother. Life Is A Brilliant Gift ! We should live, as if we believe it is ! Stop looking for external factors to make us happy. *tisk tisk* It'll never work. I'm sure we've all heard , "Beauty Comes From Within" ~ I'd say that the same goes for happiness. We've gotta dig deep , within ourselves. Find out where our passions lie. what brings "Authentic Joy" to your life ? Only you know
Booshnoogs has heard that sort of logic before, but he finds that it makes no sense. External sources of happiness are a necessity though. After all, this penis isn't going to suck itself.
Moderation...?? I originally posted this somewhere else, where the people in the stories were known. They're unknown here, entirely~ When you're 5'9", 120 lbs, stunningly perfect, yet you're wanting surgery after surgery~ Never satisfied w/ how you see yourself. Or you're putting yourself & your family in debt b/c your not satisfied w/ your above average lifestyle. OR Worse, making it extremly likely that you'll lose your children b/c of an addiction & out of control lifestyle ~ It seems to me that the question should be asked.
I totally agree with the OP, we all go through a time in our lives where we have to do things that don't make us happy in order to have a happier future. But some people will go through their entire lives serving other people and they're never really happy. You have to find a job and a hobby that you really enjoy, relationships only last so long and in the end are meaningless (and sometimes detrimental) to your happiness. Go back to school if you need to, find a subject you delight in learning about, and keep learning about it until you know as much as you can. Then try to develop the subject beyond what the world already knows. For me exploring the unknown and creating my own new theories about it is what makes me happy. Music was my subject. I believe that the search for knowledge is the search for happiness.
There is of course, the other search for happiness, taking in as many worldly delights as possible during the course of your lifetime. I am guilty of partaking in that one too But in the end they are fleeting and last only a few hours, a day, and then you need more.
