People are always asking me to write stories. Not many people, but the people who know me. The people who care to read what I have to say. Who think my mind is filled with optimism and light-hearted anecdotes meant to inspire and bring momentary escape from reality. But the stories I give them are always the “Happily Ever After” stories. The good times and the laughs and the tears of joy, not sorrow. How many happy memories are there really in comparison to the bad? We are constantly trying to convince ourselves that the bad doesn’t exist. We try to prove to ourselves that, as long as we have a certain amount of good stories rattling around in our heads then the bad stories will somehow cease to exist.
That will never change anything though. Not now, at least. Just because I made someone laugh earlier today doesn’t magically erase the past. The scars. Or the pain. Or the lies I have told myself again and again. It doesn’t erase the lies I have told them. All of them. Everyone who matters. Happiness doesn’t override heartache. It masks it. It covers it up until it is so overpowering that nothing can conceal it anymore. Until it starts breaking down your ability to find the happiness that could very well be right in front of you. Tragic, isn’t it?
That’s life. That is the reality of the world, the society, we have created for ourselves. It’s a place where everything is a competition. Someone is always trying to get one step ahead. Someone is already one step ahead. It is ingrained so deeply into our subconscious. The mindset that someone else is always going be better. Prettier. Skinnier. Funnier. Smarter. More Athletic. More prepared. More willing. More wealthy. More worthy. Worthy? What kind of society do we live in where we are always expecting another person’s life to be more valuable than our own. It’s not. The moment we consider our lives to be of an equal or greater value to another person’s, we are suddenly selfish. It isn’t selfishness or our egos implanting that thought into our heads. It’s self-respect. It’s dignity and confidence and self-esteem. But it’s viewed as selfishness.
Why would any of those wonderful characteristics matter in the world today? Why consider yourself as a viable candidate for anything if there is only going to be someone better coming along any minute. What’s the point? Why strive for Heaven if we are already in Hell? It can’t be any worse. I think that’s where it all went wrong. Somewhere along the way, we realized that nothing really gets better. Either it is better, or it is not. There is no real forward progress. Maybe a step, here or there, but for each step you take, everyone else takes one too. You need to leap. You need to fly. Soar. But that just doesn’t happen. So instead we fill our heads with menial smiles. Stories and memories that hold us over until the next moment of joy. The next moment that can drag our constantly sinking thoughts back toward the surface for another gasp of breath before being pulled back into the ocean.
So here’s your breath of fresh air: Do something nice for someone else. An act of kindness. Pay it forward. Make someone smile. Compliment a stranger. Tell someone a cheesy joke, out of the blue. Give someone a flower, just because. Don’t be afraid to do something a little crazy. Introduce yourself to someone who looks lonely or sad. Step out of your comfort zone and be courageous for thirty seconds. What’s the worst thing that can happen in thirty seconds? You might make a major difference in someone else’s day. Or life. Is that so bad? Making a good memory for yourself while helping someone else have a good memory is such a simple way to change the world we live in. To make “happiness” a normal part of society again. It’s kindness. Love. Laughter. Smiles. Peace. When was the last time you looked around and only saw the good in the world? Do this. Create happiness. Then tell a story about it. The people who know you are listening and will learn from your example. Create happiness until the pain is no longer present to infect your memories. Create happiness.
