Challenge - Day 13: "Happiness"

Irony is hitting me from all sides today. I'm really not feeling up to par, it is unlucky #13 on the challenge topics and, of course, the topic is "Happiness." I'm going to have to reach down and dig for this one, but maybe that's the point.

Benjamin Franklin said, "The Constitution only gives people the right to pursue happiness. You have to catch it yourself." Sometimes you catch a full wave of happiness, hitting you in the face, washing over you like a true ocean swell. Other times you are lucky if you're able to grab just a little piece of it as it dashes away from you at full speed. But most days I believe you slide along a continuum between the two ends of the spectrum, not unhappy but not bubbling over either.

I've had a lot of heartache in my life; more than most people, less than others. I have learned that you really to have to pursue happiness. Look for those moments that make you smile and be ready and willing to grab them and hold on, and don't be surprised if they don't present themselves very often. It is said that some people don't have the capacity for happiness and there's a ring of truth in that. When you think constantly about your misery it blocks you from seeing and grabbing those bit of happiness. I have definitely been in that dark place myself and know others who are still there. You have to work at happiness. Get out there and pursue it hard.

Today I was having lunch by myself in a cafeteria so it was easy to listen in on the conversations around me. Two older ladies were at a table next to me; each had to be at least in their early 70's. I heard one lady say to the other. "Yes, Justin Bieber is going to have to learn to be more than a boy toy. He's going to have to change if he wants any staying power." I loved it, smiled a big smile, reached out and locked on to that happy feeling. It was good.

Thanks for stopping by today; I'm feeling better.