Turn on your TV right now. If you flip through the channels and stop on CNN, Fox News, or NBC what’s the big story today? Another bombing? Another political battle? Another story about an innocent person who lost their life? Probably. It seems as though our media outlets are filled with nothing but tragedies, negativity and lost hope. All of these horrible events have actually caused some of my friends (and myself sometimes) to turn off the news only to be filled with discontent for our world today. Now this isn’t just another cliché story of how to be happy and I’m not going to tell you to just ignore all the bad to focus on the good. Frankly, I don’t think simply ignoring the bad will do any good at all.
It hit me one day while I was at work and Kid Cudi’s song "Pursuit of Happiness" came on.
I'm on the pursuit of happiness.
I know everything that shine ain't always gold.
I'll be fine once I get it.
I'll be good.
After the song ended I realized that I was unconsciously on this unpredictable pursuit of happiness and it didn’t just start all at once but this was something that had started from the moment I felt something other than happiness. I know all too well what it’s like to lose a loved one, a friend, etc. Often I asked why bad things happen to good people or how people were still capable of having joy in their hearts when they really didn’t have much of a reason to. But I think I found an answer or at least a starting point.
I began to realize that the pursuit of happiness wasn’t an excuse to face life blindly to the negativity, but to embrace both the good and the bad. Without all the negative things in your life, you wouldn’t be more appreciative of the good things, big or small. It’s the laughter of a baby, the warmth of the sunshine after a rainy day or from sitting in a cold office all day. It’s the unexpected good deeds you see happening all around you. It’s the excitement you get when your friend brings you candy at work. It’s in seeing a friend after a long period of time. It’s the beauty in the eyes of people who have lost everything yet carry no worries. It’s sitting in your car jamming out to your favorite song. It’s the comfort in knowing that in order to have a happy life, you accept both the good and the bad head on. The unpredictable pursuit of happiness is unpredictable for a reason. Today might be good and tomorrow could very well be bad, but that’s okay. The unexpectedness is what creates the adventure making everything all worthwhile.
