One Tree Hill, the bible for canvas quotes and meaningful tweets, has a lot to say about the art of happiness. The show’s nine seasons follows a group of friends through high school and beyond as they try to find their happiness — despite some major heartbreaks. One of their best quotes is:

And they are absolutely right. Happiness is a choice for many, but for the millions of people that suffer from mental illnesses like depression, anxiety, PTSD, etc. happiness is so much more than getting out of bed and deciding to be in a good mood all day. For some, getting out of bed at all is a huge victory. Depression is stigmatized so much that many fail to even understand what it is. There are those who doubt if depression is even a “real disease”, but it is, and it has been estimated to affect over 14 million people around the world. Depression is seen more in women than men and has an average age of onset of about 32, but it can affect anyone; man, woman, child alike.

Happiness is not a place you can arrive to. It is not a vacation spot or a mountain. It is just a feeling, and feelings are just a part of life. Nothing in this life lasts forever, and the feeling of being happy is no different. You are going to have bad days, and that’s okay. You are going to have the days where you feel so low you just want to stay in bed and sleep, and that’s fine. It’s not about being happy everyday, what’s truly important is not allowing whatever sadness you may be feeling to swallow you whole.

Happiness is a mood. Mood swings come and go. Again, nothing lasts forever. I think people sometimes blame themselves when they have bad moods and bad days, when it’s no one’s fault and there’s no need to get down on yourself. There is a saying, “Missing someone comes in waves." I believe the same can be said for happiness as well. It may not be there in the moment, but it’s going to come back again.

I strongly do believe that you cannot simply choose to be happy. It is far more complicated than that. Happiness is not the one-size-fits-all cure to any problem in life that may arise. No one in this world is totally care-free and happy for every second of every single day. Bad things happen, it is a part of life. People are not wired to be happy all the time, and that’s ok. Happiness is not something to obtain, it is something to be felt.