Strive to be Happy

One of my favourite pieces of writing is the Desiderata. It's something I go back to time and time again, because of it's good sense. You can hear the tenderness of the writer in the piece. It truly is beautiful. It's beautiful because it's true.


While I love the whole thing, some lines in particular really stand out. The first line, of course 'Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace their may be in silence.' Our world is so often noisy, and rushed, and hectic. We fill our lives with media, fast food, fast transport, and fast living; but we need peace, we need stillness, and quiet. These things are good for the soul. The human body and spirit were nor designed to be in a permanent state of agitation.

'Speak your truth quietly and clearly, and listen to others' Passion about something does not need to translate into shouting, and aggression. In fact, doing so may lead to your message being lost, ignored, or misunderstood. There's a lot of truth in the old saying 'It's not what you say, it's how you say it.' We must also listen to others, even if we don't agree with them. Or, another way I've heard it put 'We have two ears, and only one mouth...so we should listen twice as much as we speak.' 

'Enjoy your achievements, as well as your plans' Plans are good, but take time to enjoy the everyday achievements and victories, no matter how small they seem. They all matter. They matter, because you do.

'Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness' This is so true. A strange factor of our modern, media savvy world, is that many people are more harassed, and more starved of true human companionship than ever before. Social media is wonderful, and I honestly believe that online friendships are true ones, but it's not the same as someone being present.

'You are a child of the universe....you have a right to be here. And whether or not it is clear to you, no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.'Therefore be at peace with God, whatever you conceive him to be.' We may not always see it, or understand it, or appreciate it, but the universe is unfolding as it should. It's doing so with you in it. More than that, it's doing so because God consciously chose to put each one of us in it.

The ending I love 'Be cheerful. Strive to be Happy.' It's true, happiness is not guaranteed, it doesn't just happen. Sometimes we have to Strive to be Happy, whether this means changing a situation, or our attitude. Happy sometimes has to be worked at.

In the end though, isn't happiness much less work if we are placid, willing to listen, at peace with God, and at peace with ourselves, and our mission as children of God, helping the Universe unfold as it should?