Happiness

Robert Lockhart October 01, 2019 at 19:47 925 views 2 comments

So how come is it anyway that we want to be happy? Pretentious, dumb question? Ostensibly maybe yes, but there is the point, regarding the various worthy old platitudes seeking to distinguish happiness from pleasure – this one generally borne out in practice – that the former, unlike the latter, is not really accessible consciously but only, paradoxically enough, unconsciously, through aiming for something higher.
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Comments (2)

180 Proof October 02, 2019 at 01:02 #336699 0 likes

We're just miserable - more often than not frustrated (i.e. failing this or losing that or dissatisfied with satisfaction or ...) while we "zigzag our way / through the boredom and pain / occasionally glancing up through the rain" - always jonesin' for ____, to be (a little) less miserable, (at least) some of the time. Less miserable ... Happy. :death:

"Nothing is funnier than unhappiness, I grant you that… Yes, yes, it's the most comical thing in the world. And we laugh, we laugh, with a will, in the beginning. But it's always the same thing. Yes, it's like the funny story we have heard too often, we still find it funny, but we don't laugh any more." ~Samuel Beckett

"This world is interesting and difficult. Happiness? Don’t settle for that." ~Toni Morrison

Yeah, happiness itself makes us miserable - the more we chase after her the faster she runs away; and a fortunate few gain hidden scars to remind them of those singular moments when she let herself be caught ...

Pantagruel October 03, 2019 at 12:50 #337396 0 likes

Who knows who is really happy? Some people make it their business just to be nice to others, and when someone is nice to me, that generally makes me feel happy. I suspect the people who make an effort to be nice are the ones who are happiest overall.