Which of these photos, in your opinion, best represents happiness? The daisies or the rainbows?
Okay, I admit it—this is a trick question (and a silly one, at that). According to Mark Manson in his book The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, neither is a good representation of happiness. Why not?
“Because happiness requires struggle. It grows from problems. Joy doesn’t just sprout out of the ground like daisies and rainbows. Real, serious, lifelong fulfillment and meaning have to be earned . . .”
However, maybe daisies and rainbows can be representations of happiness, if we think of them like this:
Imagine working very hard to clear a patch of land, till it, add compost, plant seeds, water them diligently, and prevent the seedlings from being damaged by winds or floods or weeds or animals, to finally produce beautiful flowers—only to have to work to keep them looking lovely as long as possible, upon which they die and you must begin again.
Or envision undertaking a long, hard voyage through the wilderness, staving off thirst and hunger and insects and unsociable animals, and experiencing inclement weather, including a long and hard rainstorm, to finally be able to witness an idyllic scene—upon which the double rainbow vanishes almost immediately, and you are still in the middle of the harsh natural world and must continue to work to survive.
But don’t worry—there’s good news. There’s no need to resign yourself to a life of grunt work and misery. According to Manson, the key is to choose a struggle that you enjoy. If you enjoy gardening, working hard to grow beautiful flowers is your happiness. If you enjoy hiking or boating through wilderness areas, striving to witness idyllic rainbow scenes is your happiness. To experience joy, ironically, we must choose our struggle.
What’s yours?
Happiness sprouts from struggle. I like that. I often wonder if winners of MegaMillions lotto are actually happy. I thought of this once while driving my jeep around the other day. The top was down the wind swirled around me in the cockpit. It was just me and the wind, the sun shining into my eyes, large puffy clouds floated above in the blue sky. I could be happy because in my mind I earned this experience by taking the chance to do obtain something I really wanted regardless to how others might find this trivial or wasteful.
Now if I had won the proceeds to purchase my coveted prize, would it have been the same. I suspect not. The struggle made it that much better.
Wow, nice response as always – yes, it’s so much better to earn something – so glad you are enjoying the jeep!
Both photos make me smile, just like your previous Facebook post of your beautiful sunflower. 🙂 But as the old adage goes: happiness comes from within just as beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.
On that note seeing your blog almost every morning on my personal email while I”m at work also puts a smile on face, even when I don’t always respond to it right away. It’s like a daily affirmation. :).
Thank you so much! So glad you enjoy the posts. 🙂
Lovely! The more I persevere on a task, the more gratitude and happy I am in the end.
Thanks! 🙂